


The Only Butterflies Left (Will be in Your Chest)

by theteaandbiscuits



Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Foster Family, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Wings, Awkward Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Baking, Bee Toby Smith | Tubbo, Bird Hybrid Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Bird Hybrid TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Camping, Card Games, Caring Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Chatting & Messaging, Cookies, Cooking, Couch Cuddles, Dadza, Disney Movies, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Drowning, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eret Angst (Video Blogging RPF), Eret Needs A Hug (Video Blogging RPF), Eret and Toby Smith | Tubbo are Siblings, Family, Family Bonding, Family Fluff, Fluff, Forgetful Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Gen, Good Friend Toby Smith | Tubbo, Happy TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), High School, Hybrid Darryl Noveschosch, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Kleptomania, LGBTQ Character, LGBTQ Themes, Light Angst, Mild Blood, Older Sibling Eret (Video Blogging RPF), Panic Attacks, Parent Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Parental Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Pizza, Platonic Cuddling, Protective Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Protective TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Protectiveness, Ranboo & TommyInnit Friendship (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo Angst (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo Has Panic Attacks (Video Blogging RPF), Sad Ranboo (Video Blogging RPF), Sad Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Scared TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Self-Harm, Self-Mutilation, Sleepovers, Sleepy Bois Inc as Family, Slice of Life, Swimming Pools, Technoblade Hears Voices (Video Blogging RPF), Texting, They/Them Pronouns for Eret (Video Blogging RPF), Tired Eret (Video Blogging RPF), Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit Friendship, TommyInnit-centric (Video Blogging RPF), Walks In The Woods, Water Guns, Wilbur Soot and Technoblade and TommyInnit are Siblings, Wing Grooming, Winged Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF), Winged Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Winged TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Winged Wilbur Soot, Wingfic, Wings, dream is like absolutely loaded, i have ranboo brainrot okay, i just love wingfics okay, ranboo is a kleptomaniac, they rip out their wings, why? cuz i said so
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 04:13:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 56,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29183088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theteaandbiscuits/pseuds/theteaandbiscuits
Summary: !!TAKING REQUESTS!! <33Tommy's back really really hurt. It could be the massive wings that sliced through his skin in the most painful moment in his life, as he lay on the cold bathroom floor of the new foster home.In which Tommy grows some wings and SBI are there to make it happy.(this isn't angsty as it seems, there is so much sickly sweet fluff in this)Expect: Plenty of Hurt/Comfort, a good dose of shenanigans, a little bit of group chat chaos, Bird Stuff and so, so much fluff and found family.(collection of connected oneshots more than a story, lol)Chapter length and frequency (as of rn)3000 words/ A Week or Less
Relationships: Alexis | Quackity & Karl Jacobs & Sapnap, Clay | Dream & GeorgeNotFound & Sapnap (Video Blogging RPF), Eret & Niki | Nihachu & Toby Smith | Tubbo, Ranboo & Technoblade (Video Blogging RPF), Ranboo & Toby Smith | Tubbo, Ranboo & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit, Wilbur Soot & Technoblade & TommyInnit & Phil Watson, Wilbur Soot & TommyInnit, Zak Ahmed & Darryl Noveschosch
Comments: 928
Kudos: 1782
Collections: Found family to make me feel something





	1. The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there fellow lover of wings! This isn't a proper story, I'm gonna just write little moments as I go and stick them here in a series of wing related oneshots. We will get SBI family fluff, we will get preening, I am 100% going to write that.  
> Also, if you have any ideas, please please comment! I am totally open to suggestions, and if you want to request a headcanon you have for winged SBI, I will (most likely) love to write it for you!  
> REMINDER: This is all platonic, the purpose of this work is entertainment only, I am not writing this because I want the creators to do this in real life or to have things like this happen to them.  
> (title from the song: One day the only butterflies left will be in your chest as you march towards your death - by Bring Me The Horizon)  
> also if you wanna read shite about wings:  
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/26386024  
> <\--- very cool

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Set in the present time (Tommy is 15)  
> This is the basis for the universe, basically the bit that sets the whole thing up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i loved writing this. i didn't stop for like a week straight. i abandoned all my other fics (and school work :/ )

Tommy had been at this place for a few weeks now, and it wasn’t that bad. The foster parents were distant but not unkind, they gave him food and clothes, so it was okay. The only thing that Tommy hated about this foster home was how old fashioned everything was. They had no wifi, no phones or laptops, everything was based on dumb expectations from the 20th century. He was expected to help out on their bloody farm, but instead he spent evenings with the local kids he had befriended. 

Tubbo was a strange kid, way too optimistic to be real. It was unsettling, somehow. But nonetheless, Tommy found himself with the shorter boy much too often, until he finally gave in and started hanging out with him. 

Turns out friends were fun, more fun than crime, even more fun when paired together. The two would skip classes they didn’t like, and walk up the fields to sit and chat about anything and everything. It was blissful, in those moments. More peaceful than anything Tommy’s ever felt before.

“Hey Tommy.” Tubbo asked, leaning back on the school’s plastic chair.

Tommy flung his feet up and rested them on one of the chairs, “What is it, big man?”

“Do you like bees?” he questioned, with all the usual innocence and childlike enthusiasm. Tommy nodded, leaning back in his chair and glancing over the empty classroom they were sat in.

“I just think they’re really cool.” Tubbo sighed, then he stood up and picked up his rucksack. It was almost the end of break, and they shouldn’t really be in this empty room, so they needed to get out if they didn’t want to be caught.

Tubbo looked at him with wide eyes and a gentle smile, “I’d love to be a bee.” There was something sad in his tone, something alien and strange to the normal blindingly bright optimism, “Just buzz about all day, going from flower to flower, flying around.”

Tommy grinned, eager to banish the strange melancholy in Tubbo’s tone, “Yeah, big T. I’d love to be able to fly.”

School was soon over, and Tommy was planning to visit the local kids and mess about in the river, since it was horrifyingly hot and humid, and he didn’t feel like shovelling shit for three hours. Unfortunately, the guy who owned the farm, one of his foster parents, had other plans. Apparently he was grounded for getting an isolation at school (he and Tubbo may have stolen some shit, but that doesn’t matter) and he had to stay inside and do homework until dinner. It was bad, but not as bad as shit-shovelling, so Tommy took the chance to even out his bad behaviour with homework and not farm-work. 

First up was some physics past papers, but his back kept itching so he couldn’t focus on them. In the end, Tommy blocked his door with a chair and took off his shirt, but his back still felt strangely itchy.

Giving up on the past papers, Tommy pulled on his extremely uncomfortable shirt and walked to the bathroom. Now, his bedroom was upstairs, but the bathroom was on the ground floor, meaning he could climb out of the window without snapping any bones or fucking his ankles up, and he could check his back in the process. Then he would cool off in the river for half an hour, come back, then finish the past paper before tea. It was a crude plan, and would probably go wrong, but at least he could leave.

Once in the bathroom, he yanked off his shirt and twisted awkwardly to try and see himself in the mirror. Over his shoulder blades were red, sore-looking rashes, skin dry and raw from his incessant clawing at it. Tommy decided that it wasn’t that important, it was probably a combination of the cruel heat and his stupid rucksack, and once the heatwave was over his rash would calm down.

He re-applied the shirt and climbed clumsily out of the window, wearing only sliders on his feet. It was annoying and difficult, but the swim in the river would be worth it. 

Grabbing his bike, Tommy made his way over to the footpath that the locals had shown him, cycling quickly and dangerously close to the riverbank. After around five minutes of sweating uncomfortably, he came up to the jetty that the local kids jumped off of. Some of them were already there, soaking wet and refreshingly cool. 

“Big man TommyInnit is here!” one of them shouted, a boy around his age. Tommy didn’t remember any of their names, but this one was the eldest out of the local kids and he had a younger brother who they often annoyed the shit out of. 

There were also the three brothers, one who was scarily daring, one who was terrified of jumping and another who was refreshingly responsible. 

These kids were all so carefree here, no one had deep conversations, no one cared about school, no one talked about families. It was an escape, for everyone, Tommy could see it in the tired eyes of the older siblings.

When asked about the rash on his back, Tommy told them it was probably the heat, and they asked no more questions. It was nice.

He ended up spending the entire evening there, losing complete track of time, only leaving once the sun began to set and it started to cool down. His fingers were too numb to grip his handlebars properly, so he had to sit there with them in his armpits for ages, trying to get the blood back into his hands. By the time he got home, it was almost dark and he was completely starving.

He ate cold baked potato and beans that night, it was horrible but he ate most of it out of hunger. Tommy wouldn’t leave food, that was stupid.

The next morning, his back hurt like hell. Not only did he have an itchy rash, but it was aching like he had slept on concrete. 

Tommy took the bus to school and he chatted with the local kids that went to school, half of them were homeschooled. It was boring and pointless small talk, but better than sitting in silence. He didn’t even have a phone to listen to music on, his foster parents had confiscated it and locked it in a fucking safe as soon they spotted it.

Tubbo was waiting on his usual table, all alone and staring into space. What a strange kid, he thought. 

“Hey big man.” Tommy greeted him, sitting down and wincing as his back twinged.

Tubbo cocked his head, “Are you alright, Tommy?” 

“My back fucking hurts, man. It started itching yesterday, and now it hurts like I slept on bloody concrete.” he complained, attempting to stretch it out, immediately biting back a cry of pain.

The brunette raised a brow, and replied, “I’ll see if you’re okay, meet me in the science loos at 09:35. Does your teacher let you out to go to the loo?” Tommy nodded, a little confused by Tubbo’s sudden conjuring of a plan, but pleasantly so.

And so he met Tubbo in the grimy science toilets, in more pain and pissed off because he didn’t understand maths. The boy was waiting there patiently, with an understanding smile that Tommy couldn’t stay mad with.

“Hey big T, how was science?” he announced, strolling into the toilets and giving Tubbo a quick fistbump. 

“Long, and full of words.” Tubbo walked behind him, “I’m gonna check your back, don’t make it weird, or you will just live in pain forever.”

Tommy just sucked in a breath, feeling oddly self conscious, and also in pain. Maybe his terrible posture was finally catching up with him. 

From behind him, came a sound of surprise and slight pity, “Yikes, that looks sore.” a hand pressed painfully to his shoulder blade, “What the actual…” the hand was whipped and away and Tommy violently pulled his shirt back down, spinning around to face the other boy.

“What was that for? That hurt like fucking hell!” Tommy snapped. Tubbo seemed unphased, and didn’t return his angry tone, instead he just looked slightly concerned. 

“It looks really swollen and bad, you should probably go to the doctors.” Tubbo stated, matter of factly. There was no pity in his tone, only concern and kindness, which was much better than pity. Tommy hated pity. It was dumb and got nothing done, like you pity the kids in those adverts on the TV, but the only people that ever donate to those charities were either millionaires or middle aged women with a saviour complex. 

“I’m not going to the bloody doctors.” Tommy snapped, and the brunette only laughed at him. Tubbo was good like that, he didn’t seem bothered by Tommy’s angry tendencies. 

The mood was suddenly somber as Tubbo said, “Really Tommy, this looks proper bad. At least get it checked out.” there was silence, then Tommy thanked his friend and left the bathroom to return to being angry at maths. 

Tommy hated the doctors, it was too sterile and the corridors were way too long at the hospitals. It made him feel trapped, like he was some animal in a cage that all of the doctors were marvelling at. So he would not go to the doctors to get his stupid back checked out, Tubbo was most likely overreacting afterall. 

Once back in class, he had a long chat with one of the girls sitting near him about foster care and how thoroughly fucked it is. Apparently she was also staying with some farmers, though they were much less old fashioned than Tommy’s foster parents. They actually seemed okay, they let the kids ride on the lawn mowers and tractors, and the kids did nice chores like collecting eggs and feeding the goats. He wasn’t jealous, Tommy didn’t have the energy for jealousy. It was a dumb emotion, like hope and pity, one that never got anything done. Tommy preferred anger, it got things done and it changed things. 

He talked to the girls at lunch with Tubbo, grateful for some human interaction other than just Tubbo. The boy was great, but Tommy enjoyed the company of this group. They were all very similar, and very different. He and the girl from maths were in foster care, the girl called Crystal had split parents and Tubbo was in temporary accommodation, living with only his older sibling Eret and sister Niki. They could all complain about life and how much the universe must hate them. It distracted Tommy from the stinging sensation that seared in his shoulder blades at least.

Thank the lord it was Friday, and there was a thunderstorm forecast, signalling the break of the heatwave. Tommy and Tubbo were going to run around in the rain like lunatics, and it was going to be a blast, and once the stifling heat was gone Tommy’s dumb rash would piss off and he wouldn’t be able to worry about it any more. 

“Hey big T!” Tommy called out, sprinting up to Tubbo in his sliders, the slap of shitty foam against pavement alerting the other boy long before Tommy shouted. 

Tubbo smiled and stretched out his arms for the incoming tackle hug, “Let’s cause some chaos!” he cried out, embracing Tommy for a quick moment. 

“Yeah!” Tommy shouted, pumping his fist into the air with utter joy. 

And cause chaos they did, running around the neighbourhood crying out for joy, joining in with a few of the local kids as well, at one point going into one kid’s garden and jumping on their trampoline. They were soaked and cold, but the heatwave had broken so Tommy couldn’t feel anything but joy. The burning pain in his back was numbed by the cold rain that quickly soaked through his thin tee, and it was the only time that Tommy was thankful for the freezing cold nature of British rain. 

It was dark by the time Tommy returned to Tubbo’s apartment, met with a worried Eret and a hysterical Niki. She thought the fact that they had ran around in a thunderstorm was hilarious, and she kept saying stuff like ‘never change’ and ‘never grow up’. Eret just sighed and handed them both a towel, but they still smiled at Tubbo’s messed up hair. The flat they were staying in only had one bedroom, so that was shared by Tubbo and Eret, leaving Niki with a mattress in the living room behind a screen. The living room was also the dining room and the kitchen, a table pushed crudely against the wall and a small cooking area that twisted around a corner. It was cramped, but at least they weren’t in that damned motel that Tommy had heard plenty about. 

He got dried off and changed into some of his clothes that had somehow found their way into Tubbo’s possession, then ate some egg, chips and beans that Tubbo reheated for the both of them. It wasn’t the best, the beans had a weird skin on them and the egg yolk was overdone, but Tommy would have it over cold shepherds pie any day. He didn’t want to go back, so instead he just begged Eret to let him stay the night. His foster parents knew Tommy had no phone to call him on, so they would have to wait until tomorrow morning to know where he was. It was fine, they didn’t care at all. 

“I am having the mattress, I live here.” Tubbo stated, plonking himself down on the mattress with crossed legs and a pout.

Tommy leaned back onto the mattress, flopping his back onto it and immediately regretting it, “Ouch- Well I’m the guest so I should have sleeping priorities.” Tubbo batted Tommy with his hand, then the blond boy retaliated by shoving Tubbo off of the mattress, laughing as the boy rolled onto the floor and spread out all his limbs, resembling a starfish, then went completely limp.

“Bleh.” Tubbo said, letting his tongue hang out of his mouth in a cartoonish death. He opened one eye, then started laughing with Tommy. 

Eret trundled into the room, eyes tired and dressed in comfortable looking bright pink tracksuits, “I’m gonna go to sleep now, so if you boys wanna stay awake then you have to go downstairs.” That was a threat, Tommy realised, once his confused brain told him that ‘downstairs’ was the tiny desk under the staircase right next to the door. The only computer they had was there, and it was often reserved for Eret so they could type up essays. 

It was almost midnight, so probably time to go to sleep, though it was a little early for his liking, he didn’t want to piss off Eret. Tommy knew they worked unbelievably hard trying to keep the family together, and keep their grades up as well. They were in sixth form, and spent every spare moment of time studying for their A-levels to try and make a better future for their younger siblings. It was inspiring, and Tommy didn’t want to take away from the little sleep the student got.

Tubbo ended up giving in and letting Tommy sleep on the mattress with him, top and tailing to try and give each other more space. Tubbo ended up switching around at like three in the morning and putting his pillow next to Tommy’s, snuggling up to him and complaining that he was cold. It was slightly annoying, but the presence of his new, closest friend kept the worst of the nightmares away.

Tommy woke up. He expected to see the dull walls of his bedroom, but was instead met with white walls reaching higher up than usual, and Tubbo clinging onto him. He pried the boy away, and found his way to the flat’s bathroom. He looked terrible, and felt pretty similar. Sleeping on a shitty mattress on the floor had done nothing for his sore back, in fact it made it even worse. Tommy took the time to twist around and look at himself in the mirror. 

His back was red and inflamed, and his shoulder blades, usually jutting out of his skin unnaturally, were covered by swollen, angry skin, his back haven swollen by a considerable amount. He pressed a few fingers to it, flinching away instantly, but still horrified by the weird shape of his back. What the hell was wrong with him?

Tommy felt a wave of pain rush through him, causing him to double over and almost slam onto the linoleum. 

He left quickly, saying a polite goodbye to Eret and Niki, and hugging Tubbo. The only things he carried were his rucksack and a plastic bag full of wet clothes.

The foster parents were pissed. The man was angrier than Tommy had ever seen him, and his stuff was already packed by the door. Honestly, Tommy expected this, especially since he got in a fight fourth period and punched the shit out of some stupid homophobe. But he was sad to leave this place, he would miss the local kids and the days in the heat they would spend cannonballing into the river. Most of all he would miss Tubbo. He had the boy’s number written in his little black battered notebook that he kept on him at all times, but that would never be the same. So he shoved all his clothes inside his rucksack, including the wet ones in the plastic bag, and left the shit-shovelling family.

It had been three weeks since he left the farm, and his back was in agony. He couldn’t stand up straight without tears pricking his eyes, and the only way he could sleep was by stealing paracetamol to take the edge away. It was a miserable existence, and when they told him that he was being moved to yet another family, he didn’t have the energy to be annoyed. He hoped that this one would be similar to the farm people - ignorant but still giving him the bare minimum. 

Tommy found himself hunched over in a shitty fold up chair, waiting for the guy he had been told a little about. He didn’t remember much, the peeling paint on the doorframe had been much more interesting. All he knew was that his name was Phil something or other, and he had two kids. That was never good, foster kids were always treated like second best to actual kids, so Tommy was already not looking forward to this family.

“Thomas. Thomas, pay attention.” said a nasally voice. It was sweet, but devoid of kindness. The only person who consistently called him Thomas was Anita, the idiot woman who always seemed to be there for introductions. She said she was his key worker, or something. Tommy found it dumb, so he didn’t talk to her all that much.

The door swung open to reveal a man with mid-length blonde hair and a kind face. Tommy was pretty sure he was taller than the man. 

“Hello mate!” he chirped, settling into a chair. Anita began to speak, so Tommy zoned out. 

The man seemed nice enough. Tommy was pretty good at guessing what people would be like, and he guessed that this guy was going to be all nice and kind, until Tommy started to do stupid shit at school and returning home late, then he would become terrifying. He looked like he lashed out. 

A jolt of pain rushing through his back brought him to reality.

“He tends to get in a lot of fights at school.” Anita drawled condescendingly. 

Phil laughed, then said, “He’ll get on with Techno then, I hope. Though he doesn’t get in too many fights any more, he used to come home covered in bruises for the first few weeks!” he smiled fondly, pride crinkling at his eyes. That was odd, maybe this Phil guy wouldn’t be too bad afterall. That, or this Techno guy was going to beat the living shit out of him. Tommy decided the second option was the most likely.

The adults had been talking for a while now, and Tommy was focussing on the pain in his shoulder blades, imagining knives being twisted from inside his ribcage. It looked really cool in his head, he could attack people with his back-knives. It was awesome. 

“Right, do you want to grab your stuff and we can head out?” Phil smiled at him. Tommy stored the ‘back-knives’ image away in his thoughts for when he was trying to get to sleep and slung his bag over his shoulder in an automatic motion, not thinking about how he shouldn’t do that. Painful shockwaves stopped him in his tracks, and his knees nearly buckled. When Phil asked if he was good, Tommy told him that it was dizziness from his low blood pressure. 

They got to a shabby looking estate car with a lanky teenager waiting inside. Tommy decided that this was probably not Techno, since this guy was built like a stick man and could probably be snapped like a match.

“This is Wilbur, if you were wondering. Techno’s at home, he refused to leave his room. Something about school, I don’t remember.” Phil turned to Wilbur, who was in the back seat, and handed him Tommy’s rucksack, “This is Tommy, be nice to him.” 

Wilbur simply nodded, taking the bag and setting it aside. Phil gestured for him to sit in the passenger seat, so Tommy climbed inside and adjusted himself so his back wasn’t screaming out in pain. 

“So, how are you, Tommy?” Phil slid into the driver’s seat and began to pull out of the car park, “What was your last family like?”

Tommy, desperate for a distraction from the searing pain the his back, let himself ramble about the days by the river and the stupid rules on the farm. He didn’t mention Tubbo, or any of the stuff they did together.

Wilbur had been listening with a fond smile, “I’ve got a good question.” he smiled mischievously, “What is your record for being chucked out of a school? Mine is three days.” To Tommy’s surprise, Phil just laughed at that, instead of telling Wilbur off.

Tommy smiled proudly, suddenly feeling at home, “Four and a half hours.” This was his domain. He reigned king over being chucked out of schools.

Wilbur just laughed and congratulated him, and they chatted about what crimes they had committed to get thrown out so fast. Apparently Wilbur had smashed through a laptop and thrown it out a window, consequently smashing the window as well. It was impressive, to say the least.

Tommy began to hope. This family didn’t seem all that bad.

The car ride wasn’t too long, and Wilbur talked about all the dumb shit he and his friends had done, obviously missing out details as to not get in any trouble. Phil seemed okay with that, he kept chuckling at literally anything. Tommy felt much less nervous about meeting Techno now.

Suddenly, the conversation he and Wilbur were having was interrupted by the car jolting to a stop, sending shockwaves up Tommy’s back. It seemed incredibly sensitive today, he thought. 

“Right! Grab your sack and come inside, Wilbur, show him around.” Phil announced, clambering out of the car and tossing the keys to Wilbur, who was already at the front door.

It was a modest house, semi-detached and with a nice size driveway. It looked rather old, kinda like it had been one massive building once, but it was then separated into two homes. It looked to be two storeys guessing by the windows, but the attic could’ve been converted for all he knew.

Tommy was shown to his room, it was the last along the hallway to the right, past three doors. There was also a door to the left, which he was told was the bathroom. Wilbur’s room was next to his, Techno’s was the first along the hallway. Phil’s room was downstairs, along with his office, a living room and a homely kitchen diner. There were old wooden beams that ran across the ceiling and walls, and the ceiling was rather low. Wilbur had to duck under the doorways, the lanky bitch. His room had a slight slant to half of the roof, and a window. It was quaint, and very homely.

Tommy actually liked his room. The walls were painted a nice neutral violet tinged cream colour, and the carpet was speckled and beige. It was nice, plain, but nice. 

He wanted to flop onto his bed, but he might die from the pain. So he simply slipped onto his front, resting his head on the pillow and relaxing into the faint smell of fabric freshener. Despite him not even laying on his back, it began to hurt like hell. It was the worst it had ever been, worse than after that fight a couple of weeks ago where a kid punched it directly, it was enough to summon tears. Tommy rushed into the family’s bathroom, locking the door, knowing something was up. His mind flashed up the ‘back-knives’ image. It felt all too real, the back-knives were twisting out of his shoulders. Wincing, he pulled off his shirt to try and get a look at his back. He might pass out - for real.

Tommy slipped onto his knees, static dancing in his vision. He was in agony, he tried to scream but nothing came out. For a moment, he was convinced that he was dying. Then a burning sensation took over his senses, the aching ceased with an abruptness that could give one whiplash, and suddenly Tommy was free.

He opened his eyes, not remembering closing them, expecting to see God or some shit. What a surprise that would be for Phil, to foster a kid and immediately find him dead in your bathroom before you gave him his first meal. 

Instead of God, or maybe the Devil, Tommy saw a tile floor. And, oh, was that blood? He attempted to sit up, but was stopped by something pressing on his back. Instinctually, he braced for the wave of pain, but was met with a  _ weird  _ sensation. What limb was behind him? What was pressing against the shower? He whipped his head around, realising it was just his wings pressing against the transparent plastic-

Wait.

His wings?

Tommy jumped up, tipping backwards with the new weight, freaked out by the enormous amount of blood that was splattered over the tiles. He backed into the shower, slamming the sliding door, breath steaming up the plastic. 

He, Big Man TommyInnit, had wings.

A knock sounded, cutting through his panicked thoughts.

“Who is in there and why are you taking so long?” a deep, unfamiliar voice sounded.

Tommy stammered, already terrified of this Techno guy, “Uh, Big Man TommyInnit!” he regretted that the moment it left his mouth, “And I’m tryna figure out how the fuck your stupid ass shower works!” That was believable, right?

“It’s been like, half an hour man. You could’ve just said.” there was a pause, “You’ve gotta turn on the hot water, just pull the cord so that the red light switches on.”

Tommy thanked the guy, then got to clearing the blood off of the floor with some wet toilet paper. Thankfully it was still fresh, so it cleaned up well. He took a quick shower, attempted to dry off his wings and failed, then stood in front of the mirror in just his shorts.

They stretched out, to a staggering length. The insides of them were alternating black and white, darker on the outsides and white where they joined his back. The other side was tinged in a striking green, the black with white speckles appearing on the very edge where the feathers spread apart as the wings stretched out. The rest were a wonderful green, one that reminded him painfully of Tubbo. 

Tommy watched, mesmerized as the wings moved in the ways he commanded them to. He froze as a shout rang out across the house, it was Wilbur.

“When’s dinner ready?”

“About three quarters of an hour!” Phil shouted back. That was enough time for Tommy to work out what the fuck he was supposed to.

The wings were very cool. But they were not human. 

Tommy felt conflicted. What the hell was he supposed to do? He kind of hoped this was a strange lucid dream, but something told him that this was all too real. He could say the date, and the time (roughly) and that meant it wasn’t one of those dreams. He couldn’t cut them off, he’d bleed out and die. 

For now, he sat down on the floor and cherished his pain free existence. It was lovely after living with agony for nearly a month. 

It had probably been about half an hour, since Tommy’s hair was nearly dry. He would have to leave the bathroom and have a family dinner in about fifteen minutes, and right now he had massive, green wings protruding from his shoulders. 

Staring in the mirror at the speckled feathers, he wished they would just fuck off right back from where they came from. He pulled them in as close as possible, imagining them tucking back under his skin. He screwed his eyes shut as a wave of sickeningly familiar pain rushed through him. The pain succeeded to a low thrum, like it had been on the first few days, and Tommy opened his eyes to see he didn’t have any wings. What the hell? Where had they gone?

He twisted around to see his back, and instead of the itchy red rash there were two, thin, straight cuts where the wings would’ve been. Panicking, he tried to push the wings out again, and to his surprise they slid out of the cuts in his back, a slight sting accompanying it, but nothing compared to earlier. 

Picking up his shirt and pulling his wings under his skin, Tommy cleaned up for dinner. There was a spot of blood on his shirt, but it was small and probably insignificant, and he could just change his shirt.

Slinking back to his new room, Tommy changed into blood free clothes just in time for Phil to call out dinner. In the corridor was Wilbur and what Tommy presumed was Techno, both walking down the narrow, steep stairs. Techno was built like a wall, he was almost as tall as Wilbur - which was very tall - and he had bright pink, excessively long hair.

The dining area was simply a table backed against a wall in the kitchen, surrounded by mismatched wooden chairs of various sizes and levels of decoration. Tommy presumed that he would be on a spare chair, the small, plainish wooden one with a thin cushion on the seat he guessed. Phil was bustling around the kitchen, a delicious smell wafting into the hallway Tommy had paused in, something like pasta bake or maybe lasagna. Without hesitation, Wilbur and Techno slipped into their own chairs, Wilbur’s a wooden stool with a crocheted seat decoration and Techno’s a large wooden chair with arms and a faux fur rug draped over it. It was rather grand, much more grand than the quaint feel of the old house. 

“Come sit down, Tommy!” Phil called from the kitchen, balancing plates on one hand and wiping the workside down with the other. Quickly, Tommy pulled back the chair and slumped into it by habit.

Wilbur studied him with his large, brown eyes, “Your posture is tragic.” he stated, playing around with his fork. Phil let out a chuckle from the kitchen, then plonked down two plates of lasagna in front of Wilbur and Techno.

He went to straighten up, feeling the slight twinge in his back, though it was nothing compared to this morning. Grinning, Tommy picked up his fork and twirled it, mimicking Wilbur, “My posture is perfect, I’ll have you know.” Phil laughed again, carrying through the last two plates and settling into his chair with a content smile.

Suddenly, Tommy was reminded that this was a family dinner, the most terrifying thing ever. He had let down his guard for a moment, too caught up in the last hour’s events, and he had probably broken some rule and he was probably about to see Phil get angry-

“Tommy? I’m tryna offer you a drink.” Techno said, standing awkwardly in the kitchen with a large bottle of soda.

“Oh- uh, then whatever. I don’t really care.” he stammered, going back to his usual hunched over posture, finding safety in the closed off nature of it. Techno grunted and poured out a glass of whatever that was, then set it down on the coaster in front of Tommy.

Should he begin to eat? Phil had, Wilbur was spinning his fork- oh, no, Wilbur was fetching his fork from the ground, Techno was slipping into his fur-lined chair and Tommy just stared at his lasagna, maybe expecting it to insult him or something.

“So! Tommy!” Phil smiled brightly, “Do you remember me from a few weeks ago? You did look a bit out of it, but we did have a little chat.”

He did? Tommy racked his blotchy memory, forking out a slice of strange emotions that was labelled in his memory as ‘meeting people’, searching through it for blonde hair and a kind face. “Nope, I’m pretty sure I forgot that.”

“Ah…” Phil sliced the lasagna in half, then looked over to Tommy, “You can eat, by the way, mate.”

Some tension dropped from his shoulders and he hastily began to shovel the lasagna into his mouth, sighing in the wonderful, warm feeling that it provoked. It was really good lasagna, with alternating layers of tomato sauce and spinach and ricotta, with a cheese sauce baked to perfection on the very top. 

“Calm down, it’s not going anywhere.” Wilbur joked, slicing his meal into tiny little squares. Techno raised a single brow, and silence spread uncomfortably over the dinner table.

Once finished chewing, Phil spoke again, “So! Now you’ve had some time to settle in, I’ll introduce you to the few rules we have around here.” this was where it all went downhill, Tommy thought. Phil continued to speak, listing off a few rules, “Firstly, if you’re going anywhere, make sure you text me or something. I get worried really quick, and I don’t mind you guys going out with friends to town, just try not to break too many laws. Keep down the noise after 10pm, try not to swear - I won’t get mad if you do - and that’s about it. Along with basic respect, there’s not many other rules.” 

Tommy let out a sigh, glad that this was a much more chilled household than some of the other ones. There were no strict rules on electronics, no reward and punishment system, it all seemed pretty tame to be honest.

“You probably want to know a bit about Wilbur and Techno, so they are going to introduce themselves.” Phil said, gently nudging Wilbur. 

Wilbur sighed, sat up even straighter on his stupid stool, then announced, “My name is Wilbur Soot, and I write songs sometimes, and I have been living here for two years almost.” he smiled at Tommy, a gentle, welcoming,  _ knowing  _ smile, “Your turn, Techno.”

The pink haired man rubbed his face with his hand, sighing, “I guess this is inevitable…” he sat up a little straighter, suddenly much more terrifying, “I am Technoblade, I’ve lived here for just over one year and I hate all humans.”

Phil choked on the lump of lasagna he’d just eaten, and Tommy felt himself laugh with the other guys, finally feeling safe. Maybe this was the good foster home, a break from the usual, a quick moment to relax. He agreed with himself that he’d enjoy this, but not get attached, he would make the most of the freedom he had just been granted and he’d meet up with Tubbo over the upcoming summer holidays.

The rest of dinner was peppered with amicable small talk, and Tommy took the piss out of the way Wilbur cut his lasagna up into tiny little squares. Overall, great distraction from the fact he had fucking wings now.

He wanted to talk to Tubbo. And since his phone was still being set up by the kind Phil, he couldn’t text or call on it. So instead he mustered the courage to ask Phil if he could use the landline, surprised to hear him agree happily.

Taking the phone up to his room, Tommy dialed Tubbo’s number and hoped that he would pick up.

“Hello?” came the confused voice of his best friend.

“Tubbo!” Tommy all but yelled, then in a slightly lowered tone he said, “Hey big T! I’m calling from the new foster home’s landline, they seem pretty cool so far.”

“Tommy!” Tubbo shouted through the line, “I’m so glad to hear from you again, my texts weren’t sending and I was getting a bit worried.”

They chatted for a little while, Tommy ranting about Wilbur and Techno, describing the best lasagna he’d had since ever, and telling Tubbo how wonderful Phil had been so far. Tubbo relayed how sad Eret and Niki had been when they heard he was gone, and went on to say how they might be getting a proper council house some time soon. 

“Big T, I need to tell you something.” Tommy finally said, interrupting Tubbo’s odd story about something that happened at school. The boy paused and told him to go ahead.

“Okay, so you know how my back has been hurting for ages?” Tommy asked, pausing for the boy to affirm he was listening, “Well, I found the culprit.” he looked back at his huge wings, he had let them out and locked the door after practicing putting them back in.

“You did? Oh, I hope you’re okay, since my back has got the exact same rash you had a few weeks ago!”

What.

“Tubbo, don’t fuck with me,” Tommy warned, clutching the phone and lowering his voice, “This is serious, please, don’t mess around.”

There was a slight hesitation, “Tommy, I’m serious.” his voice was innocent, slightly concerned and tinged with the ever present kindness that Tubbo carried with him.

“Basically, the pain got really really bad, then I passed out on the bathroom floor, and when I woke up I had wings.” the truth was out now, Tommy couldn’t take it back.

The line was silent for a long time, so much time that Tommy almost called out to Tubbo in fear of him hanging up on him, then came the boy’s voice, quiet, fearful and confused, “Tommy? Is this real?” 

“Yes.” he replied firmly, pulling his wings around himself in a sort of cocoon. 

“I…” Tubbo began, pausing for a moment, “I hope I get bee wings.”

For some reason, Tommy found himself dissolving into fits of laughter, dissipating all the tension and talking about his wings to Tubbo like they were normal.

Tommy returned the landline to its charging port, thanking Phil and heading up to his room, ready to sleep early even though it was Friday. He could probably sleep for 12 hours straight, he thought.

Unpacking his toothbrush, Tommy changed into some pyjama shorts and headed to the bathroom. Surprisingly, he found Techno stood at the sink brushing his teeth as well.

“It's half ten, what are you doing going to sleep so early?” Tommy asked the man, who had his hair down, letting it reach its full, staggering, length. It reached his legs for Christ's sake!

“What am I supposed to do? I finished all my assignments, and I don’t really have anything better to do.” Techno answered once he had spat foam into the sink, “Plus, I get up early.” 

Tommy hummed through the toothpaste, watching Techno brush his hair and apply some kind of skin cream. He seemed like the kind of guy to do that.

“What time do you get up?” Tommy asked around the toothpaste foaming up his mouth, well aware that it was barely understandable.

Techno made a weird ‘uh’ sound, then answered, “About 5:30am.”

“Why the shit-” he cut himself off, realizing that these people don’t like swearing. Techno seemed less than bothered, staring at him with his usual deadpan face.

“You’re not that bad, y’know.” Tommy said absentmindedly, washing his toothbrush.

Techno barked a laugh, then assured him, “This place is safe, kid. No need to be afraid, I know I was when I first got here.” there was something strange in his tone, something that told Tommy this man had seen some shitty foster homes before this one. Hope filled his heart, and he longed for permanence. 

Once out of the bathroom and within the confines of his room, Tommy let out his wings after taking off his t-shirt. Deciding it probably wasn’t the best idea to sleep with his wings tucked away, something told him it would cause him pain, he slept on his side with one wing gently folded up behind him and the other acting as a blanket, a heated blanket. He slept the best he had in months, the bed was warm and comfy and he wasn’t in pain. He also didn’t feel the burning feeling of loneliness and coldness, the missing something he never had. Maybe he was meant to have wings after all. 

Cracking an eye open, Tommy expected to see the mouldy, off-white ceiling of his room in the group home, instead he was met with slanted wooden beams and old furniture lining his room. It felt wonderfully homely, he thought, rolling over. That was a mistake. 

Tommy sat up, flexing his wings behind him to stretch out his muscles.

Oh, right. He had wings now. 

Stretching, Tommy wondered what he should do. It was around half seven, the shower sounded nice, but he also didn’t want to leave the warmth of his bed. In the end, he decided he would much rather be clean and warm, pulling himself into the cold air and twisting to pop his spine. 

He nearly left without a shirt, what a bleary idiot. Why wasn’t the shirt going on- oh right. Wings. 

The wings were pulled in and the shirt pulled over his head, and he began the trek over the hallway and to the bathroom. Thankfully, he met no other people, and the shower was free. 

Deciding against letting his wings out, Tommy took a nice, brief but scalding hot shower. It was actually very satisfying on his back, since all he could feel from it for the last few weeks was pain, and the warmth that now spread from the water was a euphoric sensation that he relaxed into. 

Once clean and dry, he slinked back into his room and pulled on some clean looking clothes, throwing the dirty ones into the washing basket at the top of the stairs. He hoped Phil wouldn’t mind.

By then he was starving, well, not really starving, but he was very hungry. Voices rang out from downstairs, he could recognise Phil and Techno, so Wilbur was either being very quiet or still asleep. Tommy guessed it was the latter, Wilbur didn’t seem like the kind of guy to just be quiet. 

He strolled down the stairs with more confidence than he had, met with Phil’s kind face and Techno’s pink hair up in a tight bun. He had obviously showered sometime this morning, since it was damp. 

“Oh! Good morning Tommy! How did you sleep?” Phil asked from the kitchen.

Tommy entered the kitchen, and the smell of pancakes assaulted his senses, “I slept well, thanks.” he found it funny how Phil was meant to be his father, yet he was taller than the man, albeit by only an inch, but Tommy wasn’t done growing yet, “Are you making pancakes?” 

“Yup!” Phil chirped, pouring batter into a frying pan and swirling it around so it covered the whole surface in a thin layer of pancake mix.

“Imma go wake up Wilby.” Techno rumbled from his chair, ducking up the stairs.

The kitchen fell into silence as the pancake cooked, Tommy standing awkwardly by the table and Phil leaning against the workside. 

“What’s wrong?” Phil asked quietly. 

What did that mean? What had Tommy done? He didn’t break any rules so far, why was he getting talked to? Panic began to fill his bloodstream, what did Phil know?

“What does that- What do you mean?” Tommy stammered, picking at his nails out of habit.

Phil smiled at him, “You’re not in trouble mate, you just seem so… distant.” there was something melancholic in those dark blue eyes, “What do I need to do to make you feel at home?”

Why was Phil blaming himself? “You don’t- You’ve done everything great- I just-” he took a long, deep breath, “It seems too good to be true. I feel like you might snap at me, or something will- something has to go wrong!” Tommy felt the primal fear fill his vision, “It seems so nice, I don’t understand.”

“Mate…” Phil muttered, flipping the pancake before approaching Tommy, “You good with touch?”

He held out his hands, “Only hands.” he didn’t like touch at all, but he needed to know someone was there.

Two warm hands enveloped his own, gripping them firmly with a reassuring strength, and Tommy found his breath. Thankfully, he managed to calm down before any tears wormed their horrid way out of his eyes, he didn’t need Techno or Wilbur seeing him cry on his first morning.

“I want to help you Tommy.” Phil stated, peering into his eyes, “I want to give you a safe home, people you can rely on, some sense of permanence.”

He nodded, gripping onto the warm hands.

Two sets of feet pattered on the stairs, signifying Techno and Wilbur’s return. Wilbur was wearing a tank top, like Techno, so you could clearly see how skinny the boy was, though Techno was wearing a jumper over his. 

The lanky bitch seemed to realise something, then whispered something to his brother and the two ran back up, returning shortly with a jumper draped over Wilbur. Tommy thought nothing of it, finding the cupboard with the plates in and setting the table. The brothers helped, getting apple juice and other stuff for breakfast while Phil started on another pancake. 

Techno took the first one, dusting it in sugar then drenching it in lemon juice. Wilbur sat on his stupid stool and sipped a dark coffee, looking tired beyond belief. Under a certain light, Tommy was sure Wilbur would look more like a corpse than a human. 

“Tommy, you take the next one.” Wilbur said, voice gravelly from sleep, downing the rest of his coffee and gently resting it on the table.

“Thanks big man.” Tommy grabbed his plate and set it on the workside by Phil, who seemed to find something rather funny. Maybe it was that he called Wilbur, the stickman, ‘big man’. He was handed a pancake, then he took it to the table and sunk into his chair. 

To the utter disgust of Techno for some reason, Tommy lathered his pancake in golden syrup, rolling it up and laughing as some dripped onto his fingers. 

Overall, breakfast was good, quiet most of the time, though Tommy didn’t feel like talking much. All he wanted was to get back up to his room so could send Tubbo a photo of his wings, since Phil had gotten his phone up and running. He also just wanted to stretch, and be alone.

Locking the door and pulling the blinds to, Tommy pulled on a tank top and let out his wings unfurl from beneath his skin. He snapped a couple of photos, making sure to include the green bits he was sure Tubbo would appreciate, then sent three photos to his friend. The boy replied quickly, complimenting him and saying something about how powerful he looked. 

Today, Phil told him over breakfast, they would head out to town and buy some clothes and any other things he wanted. It was starting to worry Tommy, he didn’t particularly enjoy getting spent money on, but he wasn’t going to say no to a few more shirts. It would be just him and Phil as well, Techno and Wilbur were doing their own thing, with their own friends. 

Once in town, Phil led him to the Primark and he picked out some navy blue shorts and some beige canvas shorts, a white t-shirt with red sleeves and a few other bits and bobs. They also picked up some Cola from a garage, he would never admit it but he did have a bit of a Cola addiction.

When they got home he was ready for lunch.

Only Techno, him and Phil were home, Wilbur had gone off with some friends Phil had said. It reminded Tommy of a particular friend he had been meaning to meet up with for a while now. 

“Hey Phil, could you drive me to a friend’s place sometime? I’ve been meaning to meet up with him since I left the place he and I met, and he doesn’t have anyone who could drive him.” Tommy asked as he loaded dirty mugs into the dishwasher.

Phil hummed from where he was digging through the fridge, then he stood up with some tomato puree, cheese and ham, “Of course mate! When were you thinking?” he held out the ham and cheese, “Want both?”

Tommy nodded, then slammed the dishwasher shut before answering, “I’ll text big T some time, see when he’s free.” 

Phil began to chuckle at the nickname whilst he pulled some wraps out of the cupboard.

“What? What? It’s just what I call him.” he leaned against the worktop, the shorter man still chuckling as he spread tomato puree and some pesto onto the wrap, then decorated it with some ham and plenty of cheese, sandwiching it between two wraps. How odd.

Phil proceeded to take the weird wrap-sandwich and plonk it into the frying pan.

“It's a quesadilla.” Phil explained, “Could you go tell Techno to come get some food?”

Tommy gave Phil a mock salute, turning to run up the stairs but pausing as Phil shouted one last thing.

“Make sure to knock!”

Tommy grinned, knowing that if he hadn’t been reminded to knock he would’ve just barged in and shouted, then would’ve probably gotten killed by a 6’4’’ wall of muscle.

Rapping on the wooden door, he cried out to the pink haired teen after a confused ‘heh?’ confirmed that he was, indeed, alive.

He returned to Phil, pride filling his soul. He was doing well here, he hadn’t thoroughly fucked over anything. And he would be meeting Tubbo! The very thought of meeting his best friend caused him to bounce in place.

“Right, this one is for you, mate.” Phil offered him a plate with the wrap sandwich thing on it. It was sliced into slightly uneven triangles, like a pizza. Wary, he lifted a slice up to his nose, getting wafts of beautiful melted cheese. Okay, this was gonna be great.

Taking a large bite, he basically moaned at how wonderful it tasted, the rich tomato and melted cheese, salty specks of ham and all wrapped up in thin layers of tortilla. He could hear Phil’s laughing, and the rumble of Techno speaking, but all he could process right now was the euphoric feeling that the quesadilla incited.

Slowly, he calmed down enough to thank Phil, and say hi to Techno, who just grabbed a plate and left. What a strange guy, Tommy thought. He worked all day on school projects, surely he couldn’t just be doing that. Either that, or he was just some massive nerd. 

Once finished, Tommy thanked Phil again and rushed up to his room to text Tubbo and stretch out his wings; they were beginning to ache again. Flopping onto his bed with a sigh, he pulled out his phone and clicked on the name ‘Big T’, sending a few messages. Not too many, he wasn’t clingy. He then went onto Instagram, absentmindedly scrolling through dumb memes and videos.

Maybe he should try and find out what bird his wings come from? It would be nice to know, he could tell Tubbo as well so his friend could get a better idea what his wings looked like. So he searched up some birds he knew, going through british garden birds first, finding that they kind of looked like a woodpecker, except his wings had the green bits on them. Curious, he searched up ‘woodpecker green’ and found out that it was, indeed, a breed of woodpecker. The illustrations matched up perfectly, the mottled black and white parts almost identical. 

Warily, he searched up ‘winged people’, finding no real results except for art and stories and shit. 

Sighing, he fell face first onto his bed, relaxing into the safety that this home provided. He spent the rest of the day watching dumb videos and texting Tubbo, until dinner was called by Phil.

Wilbur must’ve gotten home sometime, because the lanky bitch was standing bickering with Phil, no malice in his tone or stance. 

“Hey, broomstick. You’re here!” Tommy announced, strolling into the kitchen as if he’d always lived here.

Wilbur turned to glare at him, but Phil’s uncontrollable laughter made it look really dumb, since Wilbur was trying to hold in the chuckles as well.

“What? What? You kinda look like a broomstick, you’re tall, skinny and the dumb hair adds to the look!” At that point, Wilbur ended up in fits of giggles, Techno coming down the stairs with a look of pure confusion painted on his face.

“You guys confuse me.” he muttered, grabbing his plate and taking it through to the table and sighing as he slipped into his chair. 

It only sent the two further into giggles, Tommy joining Techno with a plate of what looked like chicken, couscous and roasted vegetables. It smelled lovely, the chicken was wrapped in bacon as well, which made it about ten times better.

Phil and Wilbur calmed down and joined the other two in eating the wonderful meal, talking about what Wilbur had been doing and how busy town had been. The lanky bitch had been meeting up with this guy called ‘Schlatt’ who Phil seemed to not really like the idea of, and the mention of the guy sent the conversation sour. Thankfully, Techno of all people managed to redirect the conversation.

“Hey, have you added Tommy to the group chat yet?” 

Phil latched on, grateful for the distraction, “Yeah, Wil, you should add him.” The boy nodded, saying he would do it later or something.

“You guys have a family group chat?” Tommy asked, confused as to why someone would even think of such a thing.

Wilbur nodded, eating a carefully sliced cube of chicken. What a weirdo.

He and Wilbur exchanged numbers, and soon enough he was added to the group chat.

**_broomstick_ ** _ added you to  _ **_sleepy bois inc_ **

_ broomstick: whos who _

_ (unknown number): technology _

_ (unknown number): Phil! _

_ BIGMAN: ight thx _

_ technology: bwahaha _

_ technology: why are you bigman _

_ Phil!: That’s great.  _

_ broomstick: phil types like an old man _

_ technology: old _

_ BIGMAN: you people are strange _

_ Phil!: I am not that old! _

_ broomstick: capitalization, ew _

_ technology: proper grammar, nerd _

_ Phil!: You’re the English student here. _

_ BIGMAN: YOUR RIGHT HE TYPES LIEK AN OLD MAN LMAO _

_ broomstick: thats right tommy, we all make fun of phil here _

_ technology: he is very old _

_ broomstick: he also invented minecraft _

_ Phil!: Oh, not this again. _

_ BIGMAN: ??? _

_ technology: lol same tommy _

_ broomstick: he did its true _

_ BIGMAN: didt notch or smth??? _

_ technology: well yes but we dont like him _

_ broomstick: nah phil did _

_ Phil!: I didn’t invent Minecraft. I simply play it, sometimes. _

_ BIGMAN: why do u bother typin like that _

_ broomstick: you did youre in denial _

_ Phil!: It’s easier to understand. _

_ technology: damn ur old lol _

_ BIGMAN: ight ive had enough of your groupchat im done _

_ Phil!: I am not that old! _

_ technology: see ya nerd _

_ broomstick: ur short bye _

_ Phil!: Goodnight Tommy! _

_ BIGMAN: god stop acting like my brothers its weird _

_ broomstick: stop i will cry _

_ technology: im going as well _

_ BIGMAN: got more schoolwork? _

_ broomstick: LMAO HE KNOWS TOO WELL _

_ technology: nah i wanna play on computer _

_ BIGMAN: what r u playin _

_ broomstick: mc, probs _

_ technology: yup… _

_ Phil!: Thank me for that. _

_ BIGMAN: Thank you Phil, for creating Minecraft. _

_ broomstick: HAHJHSAH _

_ Phil!: Thatsnot waht i meant!!! _

_ BIGMAN: too late, philza minecraft _

_ technology: i can hear wil dying _

_ Phil!: You might kill him. _

_ BIGMAN: good he is too tall _

_ broomstick: plwads i beag spaer me tomym _

_ BIGMAN: imma leave _

He turned off his phone, stretching his wings out until they hit the wooden beams of his room. He was beginning to get used to the new appendages, the act of stretching them out and tucking them back in becoming easier each time he did it.

Just as he was texting Tubbo a link to a random video, there was a banging on his door, too strong to be Wilbur and too forceful to be Phil, so by process of elimination, the person rapping on his door was the strange Technoblade. 

Too caught up in his own thoughts, Tommy forgot to shout back at the person that he was very not ready for anyone to come into his room, and upon seeing the door handle sink he panicked and shouted, “I’m fucking naked!”

The door handle was dropped, and a rumble came from the other side, “Sorry.” it was Techno.

Pulling his wings in and grabbing a shirt, pulling it over his tank top, Tommy made sure he was decent before shouting a confirmation.

The pink haired teen trundled into his room, dressed in tracksuits, a jumper and an old cotton tank top. It was odd, but looked comfortable nonetheless.

Techno sat down on the end of the bed, a far off look in his eyes.

What was this meant to be? Tommy found the familiar panic flood into his veins, increasing with the length of silence Techno was leaving.

Out of his pocket, Techno pulled a single, black and white mottled feather with the distinct green on the other side. Tommy felt his heart sink, and stomach drop. He was done, this rest was over, he was out of this lovely household. All hope vanished into thin air, and his mind began to wander around the possibilities. If the system found out, he’d surely be taken to some institution and maybe the people would do testing on him and he’d be stuck in a padded cell for the rest of his life and he might as well just go outside and get hit by a bus-

“Hey, kid, it’s okay.” Techno reassured him, pulling him out of his thoughts with a gentle hand on his. The man then proceeded to pull the jumper off his shoulders, and from his back, almost immediately, sprouted two magnificent pink tinged wings. They were mostly white, with the signature pink striped over the very edges of the wings, where Tommy’s green parts ended and gave way to black mottled feathers. He curled them around himself, showing the mostly white but speckled in bright pink outsides. 

Tommy gawked at the display, in awe of how confident Techno seemed about his massive wings. They were huge, reflecting the size of the bearer. 

“Holy shit.” Tommy muttered, earning a light chuckle from the other. 

Techno grinned for the first time, “You can let yours out now.” So he did, removing his shirt and unfurling his wings from his back, sighing into the relieving sensation. 

“How many of you fuckers have wings?” Tommy breathed softly, still in awe with twelve different, full force, emotions wracking his brain. 

“All of us do.” Someone said from the doorway, which Tommy quickly identified as Wilbur, with two wonderful butterfly wings flitting behind him. Phil wandered into the hallway, striking black wings folded behind him.

“When I met you at the group home, I knew you had wings growing in.” Phil stated, brushing past Wilbur and sitting beside Techno on Tommy’s bed, “You looked like you were in so much pain when I picked you up, meaning these wings must’ve grown out on your first night.” 

He nodded in response, then recalled the tragic night to Phil.

From then on, the blinds in the house stayed drawn all the time, not that the place got much natural light anyways, and Tommy got handmade shirts with slits in the back for his wings so he didn’t have to wear tank tops all the time. He spent Sunday adjusting to his new reality before school on Monday.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope that was enjoyable aha  
> tell me what i did wrong in the comments


	2. Tommy's First Day at School

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (Set just after Chapter 1)  
> Tommy goes to school, meets a tall nervous boi, gets taken in by a group of crack heads, Wilbur does cryptic shit, the whole load.  
> Also group chat.  
> Also Ranboo angst somewhere in there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (author has ranboo brainrot, promise this is still tommy centric)  
> kay so.  
> this was late bc i spent hours writing pages and pages of group chat stuff i will probably never post. yikes  
> not really proud of this? idk. mental health has been a bit wack lately lol.  
> i still love this story.  
> (listened to so much lemon demon whilst writing this)

It was Monday. And Wilbur was trying to bring his door down with how hard he was knocking on it, apparently.

“Wake up, gremlin child!” 

Begrudgingly, Tommy pulled himself from the warmth of his bed and stamped his feet onto the worn beige carpet. Better than peeling linoleum, he thought.

“I am, just slowly.” the knocking started up again, “Stop trying to bring the door down, dickhead!”

He stretched out his wings, letting the feathers reach the beams that lined the ceiling of the room, then grabbed his towel from where it was sat drying on his radiator and rushed out of the door for his morning shower. Wilbur was standing in front of the door, and moved just in time to only get hit by Tommy’s wings and not the wooden door that he flung open in his tantrum. 

The scalding hot shower calmed his jittery nerves, but Tommy was still practically vibrating in place whilst eating the slice of toast Phil had thrust into his hands. Wilbur was stumbling around the house looking half dead with a cup of tea in his hands, despite him knocking on Tommy’s door like he was actually about to kill him. Techno was making himself some lunch for school and Phil was basically doing everything for Tommy. 

Standing up straight, Tommy admired himself in the mirror with the school’s navy blue v-neck sweater on. He stripped it off, opting to just go with the t-shirt, feeling as if it would be far too hot with the sweater. Still, it wasn’t that bad. The shirt was pale blue, and Tommy undid the two top buttons, complaining that it was ‘strangling’ him. 

The two boys walked him to the bus stop, Techno wearing a jumper for some unknown reason, and Wilbur looking even more like a broomstick than usual. His hair was oddly fluffy today and his exposed arms showed how thin his wrists were. Tommy would’ve said he could snap them, but he himself was probably almost as skinny as Wilbur, and would have trouble snapping his bones, regardless of how much he insisted he was a ‘Big Man’. 

The wait for the bus was short, and Tommy quickly found himself sitting on the window seat of a two-seater, looking out at the bleak Monday morning. It was unusually cool for the time of the year, which meant it was probably more like a September evening than a day in late June. The bus was mostly empty, a few kids dotted around, none of them taking much of an interest in the new kid. After a few more stops, the bus began to fill up some more, a bunch of rowdy teens in puffer jackets lining the backseats, playing shitty music and making even shittier jokes. In front of him were two year seven girls that were talking animatedly about a random TV show, and every young male character in it. 

He himself was in year ten, Techno and Wilbur both year eleven. This meant they would be leaving the high school next year. 

The bus pulled to another stop, letting on a load of kids who slipped wordlessly into spare seats, some of them asking for people to move their bags so they could sit down. Unfortunately, Tommy wasn’t intimidating enough, since the last kid who got on the bus was glancing around wildly for a seat, and his eyes settled on the seat next to Tommy. He was wearing a jumper like Techno, and had black hair.

“Hey, um, excuse me? Could I... sit here?” the boy asked, hunched over to avoid knocking his head on the ceiling. How tall were these people, jesus. He nodded, grabbing his rucksack and slipping it between his feet, rolling his eyes. The boy’s lanky legs were much too long for the seat, and one of them kept bouncing. His shoulders rounded and he kept his head bowed. All in all, very tense and uptight.

“You alright, big man?” Tommy asked after the bus pulled away, more of a greeting than anything else.

“Er-erm, yeah, I’m-” he sighed, rubbing at his face with one of his hands, which now closer to him Tommy could see the vitiligo that spidered across his hands, face and neck, “For christs sake.” he cursed softly, “Hi, I’m Ranboo.”

Tommy raised a brow at the name, then ultimately decided that it was probably more normal than  _ Technoblade.  _ “I’m Tommy, just moved here.”

“Yeah, I figured, since I’ve never actually seen you before.” Ranboo chuckled, his posture relaxing slightly, “Has Phil adopted another stray?” 

Oh, so this was a common occurrence. His heart sank, knowing that that probably meant Phil took in lots of kids and none of them stayed, “Yeah.” he didn’t meet the eyes of the kid, choosing to look down at his crappy rucksack instead.

“Oh, cool! He’s kinda got himself a name for that ever since he took in Techno and then Wilbur, so we like to joke about it to any new kids. Didn’t know you were actually living with those guys.” Ranboo rambled happily, thought there was an element of melancholy and slight grief in his words.

He met Ranboo’s eyes, about to ask him if Phil had ever taken in any other kids, when instead the boy flinched, hard, and cowered and bowed his head. Tommy could see the white specks in his roots, probably an effect of the vitiligo where the boy had instead dyed the white streaks black. 

“Oh, gosh, I’m sorry.” Ranboo babbled, “I just don’t really like eye contact and I don’t really know you that well and that was very sudden and-”

“Chill, big man.” Tommy laughed uncomfortably, noting not to look in his eyes again. Good to know. Instead he found the harsh lines of pale skin against tanned on his wrists interesting to look at, until Ranboo noticed the staring through their small talk.

“Oh, yeah, you’ve probably noticed the vitiligo. It’s a bit weird, I know. I try to cover it up, but it’s too hot for gloves and a scarf.” Ranboo mumbled, self consciously rubbing at his wrists.

“I think it looks proper cool!” Tommy said, not lying. It looked kinda badass in his opinion, “You’ve got white streaks in your hair, right?”

Ranboo nodded, looking confused.

He leaned back into the seat, looking up, “Man, I bet those look real cool. You should totally grow them out big man.”

Embarrassment wracked through the other boy’s body, his face flushing a violent red and his shoulders rounding.

“By the way, how tall are you?” he asked, knowing that he was much taller, but still wanting to talk about it. It would be funny to act all spiteful because one kid was taller than him. It was part of the reason he decided to hang out with Tubbo in the first place, the boy was much shorter than him. 

“Oh! Uh, six foot six.” he stuttered sheepishly.

“Oh for christs sake! Another person taller than me! This is fucking unfair, I’m an orphan, the universe should take pity on me and not make everyone else so fucking tall.” He ranted, glad that instead of being absolutely terrified, Ranboo let a small smile onto his face.

The rest of the bus ride was peppered with Ranboo’s rambles about the school and what things people did, and Tommy made jokes and insults that left the other boy more relaxed every single time.

Techno and Wilbur basically abandoned him when they got to school upon seeing that Ranboo had taken him under his wing.

Turns out that the tall boy was going to give him a tour of the school.

“I actually only agreed to do this because it meant I would miss out on maths.” Ranboo laughed nervously, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

Tommy chuckled, “Maths is fucking stupid.” he ran up a couple of stairs, Ranboo keeping up with him through his long strides.

“I don’t know. I’m just really really bad at it.” the other boy rubbed the back of his neck, his shoulders still held tightly. The awkwardness was palpable.

“Hey Ranboob.” Tommy smirked, glancing around at the neutral coloured walls and shitty carpet.

“Really?” the boy sighed, “What is it.” 

Laughing, he asked, “What is the worst word you know?”

There was a brief moment of silence, in which Tommy just smiled wider at the other’s discomfort.

“That’s a really horrible question.”

“Answer it, big man.” Tommy urged, bumping into Ranboo’s shoulder. The boy flinched and brought his hands up to his head, ducking to less than Tommy’s height. After less than a second, he regained his composure, laughing off the fact that he just jumped a foot into the air at someone bumping shoulders with him. Tommy didn’t pry, he knew that most people don’t want to talk about things like that. He knows he doesn’t. 

“I- I don’t really know. Very many bad words. Um.” he stammered, wringing his hands together once before jamming them back into his pockets.

“Pussy. Arsehole. Dickhead.” Tommy listed, much to the other’s annoyance. 

“I’m starting to wonder if skipping maths was really worth this.”

“No! My company is so much better than  _ learning! _ ”

  
  


Once his quick tour was over, the lanky boy let him be, running off to his lesson with the usual skittishness, leaving Tommy on his own in an unfamiliar maths classroom.

Most of the time he chatted with people in class, but like most maths teachers, this one was unreasonably strict, only letting you talk once you handed in the completed sheet. And he did not finish.

“We don’t accept slacking in this classroom.” the teacher continued to lecture him, even though the break bell had gone and Ranboo was loitering by the doorway for him. 

Tommy nodded, hoping that cooperating would let him leave sooner. Thankfully, the teacher let him go once they saw the unfairly tall boy swaying from side to side out of a brutal mix of boredom and anxiety.

“Hey Ranboob.” Tommy smirked, hoping to make a joke to calm the nerves of his only friend.

“Hey Tommy. Please don’t call me that.” They walked down some more long corridors, then came to an area with grey linoleum floor and tables with plastic stools stuck onto them. It was full of kids, eating food or just chatting with their friend groups.

“Is this the cafeteria?” Tommy asked, looking around for the place from where all this food was coming.

Ranboo nodded, guiding him to a table full of guys and a couple of girls, chatting happily amongst each other. Tommy quickly spotted Techno and Wilbur, feeling as if he shouldn’t be prying into their school life. Well, he might as well stay here.

“Uh, guys. Hey, this is the new kid.” Ranboo announced, catching the attention of an older looking boy with mid length light brown hair.

“Oh, right.” he smiled at Tommy, “Hey, I’m Clay. But everyone calls me Dream.” he spoke with an American accent, though it was slightly tinged with a British edge. By now, the rest of the group had stopped chatting to take a look at the new boy, including Techno and Wilbur. 

The pink haired boy just met him with a deadpan face, nothing new there, and Wilbur smiled gently, the knowing smile he does that freaks Tommy out a little bit.

“Hey big man, I’m Tommy.” he took the guy’s hand, “I hate Americans, y’know?”

The group broke out in laughter, the Dream guy wheezing like he had some fucking lung problem. 

“Tommy.” another American said, this one with fluffy brown hair, “We’re pretty much all from different countries. Quite a few of us are American, or have lived there for a while.”

Ranboo spoke from behind him, “Both me and Techno were born in America, but I don’t really remember much from then.”

What the fuck? Why were all these people from America? Tommy sat down on one of the seats, Ranboo slipping into the adjacent one. 

Dream told the group to shut up, silencing all the mutterings, “Right, Tommy, you’ve already met me, Ranboo, Wilbur and Techno. The one on the end is Fundy, then opposite you is Karl, then there’s Quackity, Sapnap and me.” He pointed to the corresponding people, each of them smiling or giving a little wave, “Opposite me is George, then there’s Bad and Skeppy.” The guy next to him on the other side waved, Skeppy, he thought. 

This seemed a lot harder than he originally planned. 

“I say we go with tradition and play some good ol’ two truths and one lie.” Wilbur smiled, glancing over at Fundy. There was a muttering of agreement, then Wilbur spoke again, “Okay: My favourite food is sand, I have started a cult before and I write songs.”

There was a low muttering that washed across the table. One of the American guys, Sapnap he thinks, starts talking, “I know the last one is true, the second one could be, the first one seems unlikely.”

“No, no.” Fundy says, “Use your brain, this is Wilbur we’re talking about.”

Techno clears his throat, gaining the attention of everyone, “Wilbur loves sand, you know, so I’m guessing that the first one could be true. And if you think about it, the second one could be a trick.”

Dream hums, “Yeah, the way he worded it, implies he’s only started one cult.”

“Yeah, Wilbur’s started more than one cult!” Skeppy adds. 

Tommy is almost pissing himself over how serious they were taking this, like they were actually detectives or something. Dream seemed super into it, the look of concentration on the guy’s face was ridiculous. Ranboo was also deep in thought, so Tommy decided to poke the guy and try to talk to him.

“Hey, boob boy, why are they so serious?” Tommy gently shoved Ranboo to try and get his attention, being careful as to not startle the boy. It was successful. 

“Well, most of them are very competitive. It rubs off on you. Dream and Techno are like, the masters of competitive. They literally fight over who can type faster.” Ranboo rambled, smiling fondly.

When Tommy tuned back into the conversation, they had guessed Wilbur’s lie right, being the one about cults, since apparently the fucker had made more than one cults with his friends. It was frankly terrifying that he was living with this fucker. Now it was his turn.

“Uh… let’s see…” he stalled, trying to think of a suitable lie, “I broke my own thumb by punching a wall, I fell out of a tree and managed to break someone else’s arm, and one time I climbed up the shelf in a carpet store and hid up there for two and a half hours.” 

The group went slightly silent, then half of them broke out into laughter. The guy wearing a beanie, Quackity if he remembered correctly, held out his hand even and told him he was welcomed to the group.

Then Dream had to ruin the fun with his seriousness, “So, what I’m thinking is that the climbing up the shelf in a carpet store one is fake. It seems so much more generic than the rest of them, and exaggerated for humor, even.” he leaned over his hands in a slightly sinister manner, “So Tommy, how old were you when this happened?”

“I was around seven, cause I was staying with those guys…” he thought out loud, “So I was seven or eight, and it was cold outside then, so I’m pretty sure I was seven.” he settled on his final answer, smirking smugly at Dream.

“How did you break someone else’s arm by falling out of a tree?” Karl asked, laughing. He was also leaned over onto Sapnap, strangely enough.

“Well, you see, I climbed this tree and this absolute wanker decides to stand right under where I was climbing and he kept telling me to let go ‘n’ shit, so when he wasn’t paying attention, I lined myself up  _ just _ right so that when I let go, I would crush the stupid twat.” Tommy grinned at the range of horrified and proud expressions, “He got what he deserved.”

Techno cleared his throat once more, striking silence over the table, “I think he’s lying. There is no way in hell he could break someone’s arm like that, it’s much more likely that he would snap one of the kid’s ribs.”

There was a general agreement, and Tommy realised these guys were  _ really  _ good at this game. And Techno had an extensive knowledge of how human bones snapped, since he had actually done in one of the kid’s ribs, not his arm. When he did tell them that, Techno just nodded at Tommy’s incredulous expression. It was around five minutes until break, and his phone was pinging like mad.

He pulled it out, scowling at Wilbur, as the guy had been spamming him. He simply smiled, that stupid smile.

_ (private conversation between BIGMAN and broomstick) _

_ broomstick: tommy _

_ broomstick: tommy _

_ broomstick: tommy _

_ broomstick: tommy _

_ broomstick: tommy you son of bitch _

_ broomstick: tommy _

_ broomstick: tommy _

_ broomstick: tomathy _

_ BIGMAN: WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT _

_ broomstick: youve got to stretch out your wings at lunch time _

_ BIGMAN: why??? _

_ broomstick: you’ll get cramps n stuff _

_ broomstick: it’ll hurt _

_ BIGMAN: how the shit am i meant to _

_ broomstick: disabled toilet _

_ broomstick: pick a time after sitting bell _

_ broomstick: spent five stretching _

_ broomstick: its like nothing happened _

_ BIGMAN: k ill do it _

_ broomstick: seriously tommy you could damage your self _

_ BIGMAN: i will i will!! _

Tommy looked up at his pseudo brother, seeing him smile again, that stupid goddamn smile. What was it? It seemed so… so brotherly. Like they were family. Which they were not.

Break was over quickly, and Tommy was left in a drama class. He didn’t know why he chose the subject, but acting was fun and he enjoyed becoming a different person for a little while. It was like reading a story, or playing a game; a little escape from reality.

Ranboo was also in the drama class, making them the only two guys taking drama. The teacher was kind and smiley, she chatted with the students and Tommy felt himself begin to calm down a bit. He enjoyed making people laugh, so he and a couple girls who wanted to do a comedic piece did that, trying to be as funny as the naturalistic style would let them. It ended up being bloody hilarious, some people were in tears even.

Ranboo obviously enjoyed serious acting much more, since his naturalistic piece was downright gut wrenching. The boy was an incredible actor, and he did not hold back. Tommy would not admit there were goosebumps on his bare arms. 

Lunch quickly rolled around.

“Tommy, that was actually incredible.” Ranboo smiled, his eyes red and puffy from fake crying. It was strange, how happy he looked when he had been basically having a panic attack on stage ten minutes ago.

“Yeh, you too big man.” he grinned, heading to the table where he and Ranboo had sat at. Instead, Wilbur grabbed him and separated him from his friend.

“Wilbur! What the fuck are you doing?” Tommy spat, trying to wriggle from the weirdly strong grip of the giant.

The guy grinned like a maniac, “I’m taking you to meet some friends.”

They went into the english department, then out of some double doors, then across some grass and behind a couple of jutting out classrooms. There were a few kids standing there, leaning against the wall and sprawled over some stairs.

“Wilbur!” one guy shouted, springing up from the stairs, presenting a white, pressed flower to him. Wilbur took it with a solemn look on his face, holding it to his chest then passing it back to the other guy.

“Why the fuck is he here?” a feminine voice with a thick irish accent said. Tommy didn’t have any idea what was going on, Wilbur and this guy were performing some kind of ritual and he could smell cigarettes really really strongly, these didn’t seem like the kind of people he wanted to associate with.

“Wilbur.” a guy in normal clothes said, taking a long sip from a bottle of something, “Who is this.”

“Schlatt, this is Tommy.” Wilbur grinned, “My new little brother.”

Tommy narrowed his eyes, “Are you another fucking American?”

The guy burst out laughing, then he returned to his little group of friends.

Wilbur, who was done doing his little ritual, turned to him and said, “Schlatt is about as American as it gets. He’s only visiting for another week, he flew over for a month from the states. He was really sad about them not letting him have his gun in England.” Wilbur explained, sitting down on the stairs, “This guy’s Charlie. The annoying one is Minx.”

“Fuck off.” the irish girl spat.

Tommy felt slightly out of place, feeling a bit like Ranboo often acted. He was terrified, all in all.

“Hey guys! I’m a small child and I do not think I belong here so I must be leaving-” he was cut off by Wilbur grabbing him by the scruff of his shirt collar and dragging him backwards.

“Gremlin, you are staying here for at least long enough for you to get to know Schlatt.” Wilbur demanded, forcing him to sit down on the stairs next to the Minx girl.

“Who the fuck even are you guys? I don’t really want to hang out with a bunch of year 11s, possibly even sixth formers, and some random American dude who probably hopped the fence and smuggled drugs into the school.” Tommy announced, jumping up from the stairs and bolting before Wilbur even had a moment to notice what the hell just happened. The sounds of his friends laughing rung out, and the gentle laugh of Wilbur could be heard. Tommy smiled as he reentered the English department, knowing that he made the kids laugh.

Ranboo quickly found him, knowing where he had been, and took him to a new table outside, where half of the group was running around and someone was in a hedge as well, what the hell was happening-

“Hey! It’s the Tommy guy!” the beanie kid shouted, running up to him.

“Yeah, it’s me! Fuckin’ Wilbur abducted me and took me to some drug cavern behind the English department!” Tommy complained, dodging the boy running towards.

“Yeah, that’s the lunch club and friends, they are a bit strange.” Fundy said as he walked up to him. He seemed to be the only one not involved in any kind of chaos whatsoever.

On the bench, George was sprawled over Dream and Sapnap was on Karl’s lap like some kind of massive cat. Quackity was running around the place looking terrified, glancing up into the trees with primal fear. Skeppy and Bad were also cuddling on what Tommy named in his mind ‘the homie cuddling table’, and Techno was, worryingly, nowhere to be seen.

Tommy was about to ask both Fundy and Ranboo where Techno was when his question was answered for him by the man jumping from the canopy like a fucking ninja, pouncing on poor Quackity and tumbling in a long roll to break his fall. It was terrifying, seeing the usually calm and rational Technoblade drop from the trees like fucking Tarzan.

“Okay then, I’m gonna not get on Techno’s bad side today.” Fundy said, spinning around and walking off.

“I wouldn’t get on Techno’s bad side any day.” Ranboo noted, looking over at the man as he walked off, leaving Quackity on the floor, laughing.

It was just past the sitting bell, and Tommy had started to feel the burn in his back. It was a reminder that he should definitely listen to Wilbur and go to the disabled toilet and stretch out his wings. But the authority defying part of him said not to, Wilbur didn’t get to boss him around. It was very annoying, and Tommy had started to get snappy at the kind Ranboo. His saving grace was Tubbo texting him.

_ (private conversation between BIGMAN and tubbee) _

_ tubbee: tommy my back is starting to hurt :( _

_ tubbee: how long did yours hurt for? _

_ BIGMAN: hey big T _

_ BIGMAN: mine hurt for like a month _

_ tubbee: ouch :( _

_ BIGMAN: but my wings are massive and feathered _

_ tubbee: yeah if i get little bee ones it wont hurt as much right? _

_ BIGMAN: probably _

_ tubbee: asked your foster dad for me pls _

_ BIGMAN: will do big T _

_ tubbee: you tell him bout me? _

_ BIGMAN: not yet _

_ tubbee: you can :)) _

_ tubbee: i want bee wings :D _

_ BIGMAN: this is like a little concerning how much you love bees _

_ tubbee: :( _

_ BIGMAN: OKAY I TAKE IT ABCK TNO THE SAD FACE PLEADE NOT HTHE SADN FACE BIG T _

_ tubbee: :) _

_ BIGMAN: see ya big T gonna go stretch out me wings like a good winged boy _

_ tubbee: :DD _

_ BIGMAN: i really want to introduce you to this friend  _

_ tubbee: new freind?? _

_ BIGMAN: he is called ranboo and he is you but tall, more nervous and less bees _

_ tubbee: sounds great i would love to meet him :DD _

In a few minutes, he was taking his shirt off in the stuffy disabled toilet and letting his wings sprout from the slits in his back, sighing as he let them loose. It was relieving, like taking a massive breath of air after being underwater for hours. Tommy took a long breath, basking in the freedom, then pulled his wings back under and exited the loo, returning to the chaos table.

“Hey Ranboo.” he asked the boy, who was sat down on the table picking at some salad.

He looked up, not making eye contact.

“Do you guys have a groupchat?” he questioned, sitting down so he could watch the utter carnage unfold. Dream was fighting George, Sapnap and Bad, screaming war cries and George screeching like a girl. No one seemed to bat an eyelid.

Ranboo nodded, pulling out his phone, “Give me your number, I’ll add you.” 

He was added to a chat named ‘no escape’. It seemed concerning at first, then Tommy remembered all the shit that had happened today. It was almost enough to make him forget about the massive fucking wings that he had growing on his back. And that was saying something. 

Last lesson was some dull Geography stuff. Tommy didn’t care about sedimentary rocks and how they were formed, so he just texted Tubbo half the time. There were also many notifications from the group chat, but he chose to ignore them, knowing that he would probably spend too long looking at it and get caught by the teacher. Although, she was going on a tangent about some school trip she took some A-level students on, so she probably wouldn’t even notice Tommy on his phone at all. 

Ranboo wasn’t on the bus home, so Tommy just opened the group chat and texted them if they knew where the tall boy was. 

  
  


**_no escape_ **

_ BIGMAN: hey ranboob why not on bus _

_ memoryboi: left school eary soz _

_ sandy: dude. why. how.  _

_ nightmare: give us your secrets _

_ theblade: chill out guys leave the boy alone _

_ sandy: wild technosoft _

_ BIGMAN:??? _

_ nightmare: techno is only nice to ranboo _

_ memoryboi: yknow what it doesn’t matter _

_ sandy: sus _

_ habibi: please ranboo how do i leave school early _

_ memoryboi: please leave me alone lol _

_ theblade: everyone do as he says _

_ BIGMAN: i see what you mean, wilbur _

_ habibi: yes the blade i will leave your kid alone _

_ sandy: only i am allowed to adopt people and be really weird about it :(( _

_ fungi: i am not your son _

_ sandy: hello my boy _

_ fungi: please leave me alone _

_ karlos: hey big q sappynap wanna go to the woods and go feral _

_ habibi: yes beautiful _

_ karlos: let me go spam sappynap _

_ BIGMAN: this is really strange _

_ memoryboi: yeah we all are _

_ (private conversation between BIGMAN and memoryboi) _

_ BIGMAN: hey big man whats up _

_ memoryboi: im good _

_ BIGMAN: what happened _

_ memoryboi: panic attack. _

_ BIGMAN: f _

_ memoryboi: yeah _

_ BIGMAN: feel really shitty about the others saying it was a way out of school _

_ memoryboi: nah man they didn’t know _

_ memoryboi: techno and i already talked about it _

_ BIGMAN: you got a stable home life big man? _

_ memoryboi: stable? yeah _

_ BIGMAN: sick _

_ memoryboi: im good now okay _

_ BIGMAN: good on you _

_ BIGMAN: i want to introduce you to tubbo _

_ memoryboi: ??? _

_ BIGMAN: friend _

_ (BIGMAN created chat ‘da bois’) _

_ (BIGMAN added tubbee, memoryboi) _

_ (BIGMAN changed tubbee’s name to beeboi) _

_ beeboi: hello :D _

_ memoryboi: hullo _

_ BIGMAN: you are both my friends _

_ BIGMAN: tubbo you are my favourite _

_ beeboi: :D _

_ memoryboi: hullo? _

_ beeboi: i am tubbo hello freind. _

_ memoryboi: great :D _

_ beeboi: :D _

_ memoryboi: you are my new friend _

_ beeboi: tommy i am ditching you _

_ BIGMAN: fuck you _

_ memoryboi: we will run away _

_ beeboi: live in the forest with da bees :D _

_ BIGMAN: hope you both get eaten by a fcuking bear or somet shit _

  
  


Tommy sighed, grabbing his rucksack and heading off the bus, following Wilbur and Techno down the aisle. It was warmer outside now, and the walk home was short but slightly sweaty. Tommy felt ready to have a nice, cool shower by now, tired from the new people he met today. He did love meeting people, but it left him drained sometimes, and this particular group left him wanting to sleep for twelve hours. 

So that’s pretty much what he did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well hope that was okay  
> next chapter will be  
> tubbo  
> :D


	3. Tubbo comes over (Pt 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (Set a few days after Chapter two)  
> Tubbee or not Tubbee, that is the question.  
> (in which Tubbo comes over to Tommy's for a totally normal sleepover in which nothing happens)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, this was fun. This could literally be two different chapters, but yeah. The first half of this is literally just Tommy being taken care of by Phil and co, then Tubbo happens.  
> Who knows whether Tubbo will get bee wings or not?? Y'all don't >:))  
> Hope you enjoy this!!

When Tommy got the message from Tubbo that they had secured a council house, he stayed on call with him and Eret and Niki for hours, talking about how great it was and how shit the government and the council were. It was around eleven at night, and when Tubbo told him where they were moving to, Tommy couldn’t help the shouting, not at all. Phil had rushed into his room, asking what the hell happened, only to be just as happy for Tommy.

Tubbo was going to move into this town. He would be going to the same school.

Maybe the universe was finally taking some kind of pity on him for once. 

Another great thing is the fact that Tubbo would be coming over for a night and two days over the weekend, Phil said it would be okay for Tubbo to sleep on the floor in Tommy’s room, so they would be having a sleepover. 

_ (private conversation between BIGMAN and tubbee) _

_ BIGMAN: hey big T hows ur back _

_ tubbee: ouchy :( _

_ BIGMAN: hope you dont have to experience getting feathered wings  _

_ tubbee: was it bad? _

_ BIGMAN: thought i was dying n shit _

_ tubbee: this is not helping my nerves _

_ BIGMAN: sorry bout that  _

_ BIGMAN: you should be scared tho _

_ BIGMAN: scared to meet the fuckers that live with me _

_ tubbee: thought they were okay??? _

_ BIGMAN: they are both very tall and cryptic _

_ tubbee: what about phil _

_ BIGMAN: phil is good _

_ tubbee: so im coming over on saturday yeh? _

_ BIGMAN: yup _

_ tubbee: do you want eret and niki to come as well on saturday to say hi? _

_ BIGMAN: can if they want to _

_ tubbee: k niki might come _

_ BIGMAN: what i thought _

_ BIGMAN: is eret sleeping _

_ tubbee: probably _

_ tubbee: nope theyre working :( _

_ BIGMAN: f  _

_ tubbee: i cant wait to come over tho! _

_ BIGMAN: me neither big T _

He sighed, wrapping his wings around him like a massive, feathery, heated blanket. The feathers were slightly bent and out of place, he noted, running his hand through the parts he could reach. It felt very nice, like absentmindedly combing through his hair. 

It was early Friday evening, and Tommy was full of energy. He was excited for the weekend and meeting up with Tubbo, and it was probably going to keep him up tonight. Another thing that kept weighing on his mind was the mad friendship group he had been inducted into. He and Wilbur had been planning to set up a ‘country’ (a separate group chat, actually) for only the Europeans. The whole friendship group had just been all the American kids in school banding together and dragging some unfortunate other kids with them. It had been only him and Wilbur, then the lanky boy had added Fundy to make the group chat. Tommy told him that they would have Tubbo, Niki and possibly Eret in their ‘country’ soon enough. 

He bounded down the stairs, hopping two at a time and four at the end, swinging off the banister and into the living room. There was a film on, but the volume was low and no one was watching it. Techno had his wings out, and Phil sat behind him gently raking his hands through the feathers on them. Phil also had his wings out, and Wilbur was carrying out a similar action. All three of them looked serene, lost in the moment. He had to clear his throat to get them to notice him, and even then only Phil turned his head to smile at him.

“Hey guys?” he announced, thoroughly bewildered by the strange scene in front of him, hovering in the doorway.

Wilbur shoved his brother, who lazily turned to the newcomer, upon sighting the small boy tensing up and sitting up straight. 

“Hey Tommy, do you want to join in?” Phil asked, turning on the couch to face him. Behind him, his wings twitched with a kind of need he didn’t really understand.

“Is this another one of Wilbur’s cults or some’in’?” Tommy asked, still loitering in the doorway. The three winged people laughed, Phil doubling over in chuckles and Wilbur tinging the house in his high pitched cackling. Techno was the only one who laughed normally, rumbling chuckles the bassline to the more obnoxious laughs.

Tommy found himself smiling at the strangely familiar but at the same time alien feeling, one that made him feel content and sad at the same time, the same feeling that Wilbur’s smile incited. 

“Sit down Tommy, I’ll preen you.” Techno offered, shuffling back on the couch, towards where Phil was sat. He patted the small space he had cleared, inviting Tommy to sit down. Warily, he sat down in front of the terrifying man, spreading his wings out like Phil and Techno had.

“Preening is a behaviour that flocks, close groups, carry out. It’s really good for bonding and wing upkeep.” Phil stated, sitting back where he had sat before, “Okay Wil, go ahead.” there was a soft sigh of content from behind Tommy, “You should always make sure that the person you’re preening is okay with it, since wings are such sensitive things- Wilbur could you not?”

There was a light snicker from the tall boy, then Techno began to speak, “Tommy, are you comfortable with me preenin’ you? It’s okay if you’re not, or if you’d rather Phil or Wil do it.” The man rumbled in his usual monotone. Tommy took a moment to think about it - was he really okay with Techno, the man he had known for around a week, carrying out what Phil seemed to describe as such a personal thing?

He stretched his wings out, deciding that it was probably best he had someone sort them out. That was what preening was, right?

“Yeah, it’s okay with me.” he grinned, noticing a chance to piss off Wilbur, “I’d much rather have The Blade do it than Wilbur Lanky Broomstick Soot.”

“Tommy, I don’t even want to go near your wings. Gods know where they’ve been.” Wilbur snapped, much to Tommy’s delight. 

“Right then.” Techno said, “Phil, you can start on mine, Tommy, I’m gonna start whenever you want to.” 

He took a moment to prepare himself. It was a long time since he had any kind of meaningful human contact, and though he would never admit it, Tommy kind of craved the fond hugs that he felt like everyone else got except him. Even with Tubbo, they hadn’t been that touchy, with the exception of the clingy boy trying to hug him once or twice. Tommy wouldn’t say he was touch starved, no, he was just fine. This was going to be just normal, family things. 

“Okay big man, you can start your weird ritual bird shit.” Tommy affirmed, bracing himself. From behind him, Techno let out an undignified snort, then started to preen him.

The hands barely ghosted over his feathers, applying no pressure at first, then Techno ran his hands gently down the feathers on his back where his wings latched onto his shoulder blades, and Tommy shuddered at the explosion of sensation. His senses were ablaze, the kind hands running through his sore wings spread a kind fire that burnt down the deadwood and left the fresh plants to thrive. It seared through his veins and lifted him up, he felt like he was floating. Barely aware of what was going on, he threw his head back and let out a quiet gasp. He heard the fond laughter, but all he could feel was Techno gently combing his deft fingers through his wings and much he missed human contact. Once the initial rush was over, and Tommy had returned to a kind of aware state, he tried to focus on the small, meaningful corrections that Techno would make to each and every bent feather. He felt himself relax completely as the skilled man straightened each feather with deliberate, careful strokes, realigning each fibre and gently brushing any dirt from them. 

It was like having someone run their fingers through your hair, but with more deliberate movements and intention. Tommy also got a kind of urge to preen the older boy back, which was very strange considering he’d never preened someone in his life. Then again, he’s only had wings for around a week now. 

Feeling like he was floating, Tommy could only really focus on the gentle, calming touch that ran through his surprisingly sensitive wings. The feeling from before, from Wilbur’s smile, crept into the moment, and he expected it to tinge it with awkwardness. Instead, it filled him with warmth and a sense that he was  _ home  _ and  _ safe.  _ It enveloped him, chasing away the grief and anger, and the long lasting coldness, the sensation of floating taking full hold of him.

It could have been hours until Techno’s mindful correcting of his feathers faded into just having his wings gently combed through. Another few pairs of hands joined them, all of them as warm and kind as Techno’s, all of them exuding the same familiar feeling.

Coming round to his senses, Tommy lazily turned his head to see the serene faces of his brand new family, and he smiled. God, he was getting soft.

“You good there mate?” Phil chuckled, stopping carding through his feathers to shake Tommy’s shoulder. The other two stopped as well, leaving him feeling cold and alone.

“Yeah.” he affirmed, not wanting to seem needy so he didn’t ask them to carry on, no matter how much he wanted it.

“Looks like you’re about to fall asleep.” Techno noted, starting to run his calloused hands through Tommy’s wings again. He had to bite back another sigh of contentment, instead nodding and leaning into the touch.

“It’s so nice to see you finally warming up to us, Tommy.” Wilbur teased, though his tone was void of malice and saturated with that same, goddamn feeling. He was probably doing the smile as well, if Tommy were to take a guess. Wilbur then joined in, his slender fingers reaching places Techno couldn’t. Despite all his teasing, Wilbur was really a good guy, and Tommy could see himself seeking guidance from the man in the future.

Then Phil joined in, but instead of carefully running his hands down Tommy’s wings, he started gently massaging the incredibly tense and sore muscles in his back and wings. 

In response, Tommy sucked in a breath, but held up a thumbs up to tell Phil that he was okay with it. The new sensation rushed through him, borderline painful it was so intense, but the intent behind it made sure the feeling was enjoyable.

Phil knew what he was doing. It was evident with every mindful pressure he applied that Phil was a master in this kind of thing. It was no surprise, the man probably did it for his two eldest sons as well, but it was reassuring to know that Tommy was in good hands. 

The sensations faded and melted into one, big glow of content, warming him from the inside out, until it took over everything and carried him away into a peaceful sleep.

* * *

“Hey mate, we’re about to have dinner.” a gentle voice informed him, the dull feeling of someone shaking his shoulders waking him, “Do you want to come and eat?”

Pulling himself up to sitting, he groaned as the bright light filtered into his eyes and images of the homely living room began to arrange themselves into something he could comprehend. Hunger rippled through him as the smell of tea cooking filled his senses.

“Yeah… just lemme wake up…” With a bit of effort, he pushed himself up so that he could see into the kitchen. Everyone had their wings out, and were all helping set the table with assorted food and drink. The smell of wonderful chilli made Tommy get up from the couch and stumble over to the table, where he collapsed onto his chair, almost crushing his wings in the process. All of a sudden, Wilburs stupid stool made alot more sense. 

“What are we having?” he asked, watching Techno lay a bowl of grated cheese on the table.

Wilbur plonked down on his stool, butterfly wings flitting happily behind him, “We’re having Phil’s homemade tacos. He makes really good chilli, but the actual shells are store bought.” he whispered the last bit, as if the ever observant Phil wouldn’t notice it.

Phil shoved a plate into Wilbur’s face, telling him to stop spreading lies, then sat down. 

“So, how did you find preening, Tommy?” Phil asked, reaching over to the pan of chilli and dropping some into the soft shell on his plate.

His mind searched for a suitably distanced, but not cold, response, “It was weird, nothing like anything I’ve ever felt before.” that was good enough, right?

This time, the stone faced Techno spoke up, “It’s an amazin’ experience. I can remember the first time I had Phil preenin’ my wings, I was terrified to even let my wings out around the house.” he glared solemnly at the taco on his plate, “I just melted, and fell asleep like you, Tommy. After that, me an’ Phil were a family.”

Phil nodded, chewing on some salad. Truly, Tommy didn’t know what to make of that. _Family_? They were _family_? His thoughts began to race, the new instincts telling him that _yes, they were a flock now_ , but his rational human thoughts told him that these people were little more than strangers. The feeling was back, stronger than ever. It told him that they were a family, he was part of the family, that these people would love him for everything he was.

“Mate, it’s okay.” Phil smiled, “I know we aren’t your family right now, and we don’t ever have to be. Just know that we are all here for you, and nothing will change unless you want it to.” there was that feeling again, mixed with longing for something he was sure he once had. 

“I- yeah.” Tommy let a nervous laugh speak for him, “Thanks, you guys.” he wiped a stray tear he hadn’t even noticed sliding down his face. His chest was exploding with emotion, the feeling that told him these people were always meant to be his family. Wilbur reached over and wrapped an arm around him, the same  _ brotherly  _ smile on his face.

“Welcome to the Sleepy Bois Inc.” It was said so seriously, that Tommy couldn’t help but burst out in cackling laughter. The tension was broken and he could finally enjoy these wonderful smelling tacos. 

“So, Tommy, looking forward to having Tubbo over tomorrow?” Phil asked, once they had all eaten a suitable amount of taco, “Is he human or not?”

Swallowing a mouthful of cheesy taco, Tommy answered, “I think he’s gonna grow his wings in a few weeks, actually. He got the same rash I had on my first few days when mine grew out.” he sprinkled yet more cheese on the top of his taco, “I’m hoping that he doesn’t have to go through the amount of pain I had to.” 

Wilbur sighed, holding up his pathetic looking taco, “You avians complain so much.” he took a bite of the half empty shell.

“Wil, I’ve already told you this, it bloody hurts when your wings grow in. Especially big ones.” Phil reasoned, spreading his wings behind him as if to prove his point. Tommy never really noticed how huge and striking Phil’s wings were. They were much larger than his own, and jet black. The feathers were perfect, silky smooth and winked in the warm light, reflecting a multitude of colours that made them shimmer in blues and pinks accented with turquoise and purple. 

“Yeah, I get that, but can you go a single day without complaining about it?” Wilbur bickered, doing the stupid twirly thing with his fork again. Tommy hoped he would drop it. 

“It does hurt though, and we don’t complain about it every day.” Phil returned, smacking the fork out of Wilbur’s hand and onto the table. 

The rest of the night went without too much arguing, and Tommy told them all about Tubbo and the boy’s concerning amount of love for bees. It didn’t really help him sleep, all of his thoughts were full of things he could do with his best friend. He really missed the boy, even though they had only seen each other around a month ago. Slowly, he fell into a peaceful sleep full of nonsensical dreams that were forgotten quickly. 

* * *

“Tommy, could you  _ stop. _ ” Wilbur demanded for about the fifth time. Menacingly, he reached forward in the car and tapped Wilbur on the shoulder once more, then returned to kicking the back of his chair. It was really fun, winding up Wilbur. Phil simply held back chuckles and tried to focus on driving down the winding country lanes.

“No, I don’t think I will.” Tommy smiled, continuing to kick the back of Wilbur’s chair. They were in Phil’s beat up car and were almost at the village where Tubbo lived, and where Tommy had stayed for a while. It was a nice place, half of the village comprising of ancient houses and farms and the other new homes built on the flat fields that surrounded the place. Nostalgia filled his mind as they passed the path he used to cycle down and meet the local kids to mess around in the river. 

They made it to the residential area, grids of not quite new terraced houses clashing with the thatched roofs and old wooden beams. They passed the house with the trampoline in their front garden and soon made it to the apartment in which Tubbo and his two siblings were situated, though not for too much longer.

Niki was waiting in the doorway, hair dyed a new colour and smiling sweetly in the late morning summer sun.

“Hey Tommy!” she greeted him as he climbed from the back of the car, pulling him into a hug, “Hello Phil, is it?” 

While Niki talked with Phil and Wilbur, Tommy looked for Tubbo.

“Tubbo! You better get the fuck out here right now!” he shouted, met with a blurred brunette barreling toward him and tackling him with a hug. The crazy boy gave him a toothy grin and latched onto him like some kind of parasite, a packed rucksack on his back making it just that much harder for Tommy to balance. It ended up with them both falling in a heap on the asphalt, giggling at the absurdity and the joy. 

“Tommy…” Phil said fondly, “Get up off the floor, mate.”

He sprung up and tossed out a hand to his best friend, yanking him up. They were both grinning like fools, and once they stood up Tubbo pulled him in for another hug.

“I missed you, big man.” Tubbo whispered, smile softer this time.

“Yeah, me too.” he admitted, letting go of the boy and glancing around to see Wilbur chatting animatedly with Niki, “Right, should we go inside?” he suggested. Tubbo agreed, catching the attention of Phil, who followed them inside the small flat. There were boxes piled up on the stairs and under the table, obviously ready for moving, and the shelves were bare of any ornaments they might’ve owned. They only needed to pack up their belongings, not the furniture, since the council house would come with its own and they needed to leave the furniture in the apartment for whoever used it next. 

Phil sat down on the tatty armchair, and Tommy and Tubbo curled up on the couch and Niki sat down with a cup of tea on one the other side of the couch that Wilbur made in the kitchen.

“So you three have been in temporary accommodation for nearly three months?” Phil asked, sighing as the nod from Niki confirmed his belief, “God, their systems are screwed.” 

“Well we’ve got a council house now, just need to move into it.” Niki smiled, sipping her tea, “It’s going to take a while, but we should be all sorted in time for September so Tubbo can start school.” 

Wilbur perched on the arm of the couch, “So is Tubbo staying tonight at ours with the gremlin?” he asked, looking at Phil.

“Yup!” Phil smiled brightly, chuckling at the stupid nickname. Tommy didn’t agree with it, but he guessed all that calling Wilbur ‘Broomstick’ earnt him a dumb nickname. Niki seemed to find it bloody hilarious, doubling over in giggles.

“He is a gremlin-” she cut herself off with more giggles, “Tommy, I’m so sorry!”

Tommy sighed, turning over to Tubbo in mock annoyance. The boy had a mischievous grin plastered on his face. Of course, his friend was going to adopt that nickname as well, he thought.

“So, Tubbo, how’s your back?” Phil asked kindly, though Tommy’s stomach dropped. Niki probably didn’t know about how all of them had wings, this was going to be really hard to explain to her-

“How did you know his back was hurting?” Niki puzzled, “Has Tommy told you?”

Phil carried on obliviously, “Yeah, Tommy had his grow out on the first night he stayed at ours, and Tubbo texted him about his back and Tommy told him what it was if I’m right.” he noticed the horrified expression of Tommy and Tubbo slightly too late. 

“What are you talking about?” she glanced around at the varied expressions, all of some kind of horror and confusion, “Tubbo, what’s going on?” 

Wilbur glanced at Phil, then at Tommy, nodding, “She’s his sister. She should know.” even Tubbo started nodding, “Phil? Should I?”

“No mate, let me explain.”

Fear painted itself with an ugly mixture of other emotions onto Niki’s face, “What are you talking about?”

Phil brought his hands in front of him, “Niki, have you ever heard of avians?” the girl nodded slowly, terror and disbelief twisting her expression, “Well, we exist. In real life. Me, Wilbur, Techno and Tommy are all wingfolk. Tubbo is, most likely, as well.” 

“What?” she uttered, “How did I not-” 

“Hey, it’s okay.” Tubbo smiled, “I’m gonna be a bee boy!” his eyes sparkled with joy and excitement. Niki laughed, thought confusion and disbelief felt heavy still, even in her giggles.

Wilbur shrugged off his jumper, revealing the slits cut into his t-shirt, from which the elegant butterfly wings sprouted. They were a creamy yellow, similar to that of his favorite sweater, with intricate black markings laced across the edges of them, streaks of striking dark navy blue along the bottom with a couple of spots of bright red. Wilbur’s wings were that of a Swallowtail butterfly, graceful and brilliant.

Awestruck, Niki stared as Phil let out his wings as well, Tommy deciding not to (he wasn’t wearing one of the special shirts). 

“Oh my lord…” she breathed, “They’re beautiful.”

“Not gonna report us to some government officials, then?” Wilbur smirked, his wings flitting behind him now they were free from under his skin. Laughing, Niki shook her head, then pulled Tubbo from the other side of the couch into a long hug. Tommy would have complained at having his best friend stolen from him, but he let Tubbo embrace his older sister. This was a rather huge revelation after all. 

Phil spent a little time over some tea explaining to Niki all the intricate details, and what would most likely happen to Tubbo in the next week or two, depending on what kind of wings he was growing. All the while, the boy in question was sat next to Tommy with barely contained excitement, often interjecting into the conversation to exclaim how awesome it was going to be when his bee wings finally grew out. Tommy had a kind of dread, with how much Tubbo was sure he was going to get bee wings. It was no more likely than him being a feathered, or a butterfly like Wilbur, yet the boy still assured him that he  _ would  _ be getting his bee wings. He hoped that that would be the case, but he was still worried. He didn’t want his friend to be disappointed. 

Eventually, they all packed into the car; Phil driving, Wilbur in the passengers and him and Tubbo sat together in the back. It was slightly cramped, but comfortably so.

“How big is the house?” Tubbo fired yet another question at him, “Does it have a swimming pool?”

“I’ve already said, it’s got four bedrooms. And no, why would I have not mentioned a swimming pool already if we had- Tubbs, you are being really dumb right now.” he turned to his friend, who had a massive grin spread across his face. 

“I’m not being dumb, I just want to know about your knew home!” he pouted, grabbing onto Tommy’s arm.

“Man, stop being so clingy-” he shook him off, “Well you’ll see what my new home looks like when we get- Phil? When will we get there?”

Slowly, the car pulled into a layby. Tommy glanced around, confused, why had they stopped in the middle of nowhere?

“Shut the hell up, or get out.” Wilbur snarled, causing Phil to chuckle.

“What?” both him and Tubbo said in unison, sharing a look and laughing a little at the silliness.

“Wilbur, you’ve done your little bit, can I carry on driving now?” Phil asked between laughs, “And Tommy, we’ve got about five minutes left.”

Soon enough they were pulling into the gravel drive of the house, and him and Tubbo were bounding up to the door. He caught the keys that Phil tossed to him like he had to Wilbur when Tommy first arrived here. That felt like centuries ago, with all the crap that had happened and all the friends he had made. Like Ranboo, for instance, who would be coming over later today for an hour or two to join them on a walk up to the top of the hill which he kept talking about and telling him about his peculiar nature walks. The boy was rather peculiar, in all honesty.

“So where’s your room, big man?” Tubbo asked, marvelling at the small kitchen-diner. Tommy guided him into the living room, showing him the door that led to Phil’s bedroom and then dragging him up the steep carpeted stairs, onto the slightly uneven and creaky landing, pointing to the small bathroom and then leading him to the right, showing him the doors on the right. They winded up at his bedroom door, the one furthest away. He went in first, explaining to Tubbo that he would get changed into a shirt that would allow him to let his wings out. It was a relief when he finally set them free, stretching them out and shouting to Tubbo that he could come in.

“Woah,” the boy gasped at his wings, “They’re huge…” 

Tommy grinned, flexing his wings out as far as the small room would allow him, “Yeah, now imagine these burstin’ out your back.” he collapsed down onto his bed with a light sigh, then glanced over at the boy standing in his doorway, his eyes glistening with fondness.

“I wanna try something…” Tubbo murmured, climbing onto the bed next to him and wrapping him in a hug, “Now your wings.”

“What?” Tommy was still in slight shock at the sudden contact.

Tubbo nestled closer into him, “Use your wings to hug me.”

He did as Tubbo told, enveloping the smaller boy in his massive wings, content filling him as the lovely warmth of his closest friend spread through his body.

Tubbo sighed, “This is really nice.” he leaned into Tommy even more, “Your wings are really warm.”

Tommy hummed in response, being mindful as to not apply too much pressure on the most likely incredibly sore back of his friend. Holding back the urge to mutter kind words to his friend, Tommy let himself relax into Tubbo’s comforting embrace. 

They stayed like that for a little while, just enjoying the warmth of each other’s bodies and the winged hug that neither of them had ever experienced before. By the time they eventually pulled away, it was almost time for lunch. In the little time they had, Tommy showed his friend the chaos of the groupchat.

**_no escape_ **

_ BIGMAN: HEY GUYS I HAVE FRIEND _

_ memoryboi: hi tommy and tubbo _

_ BIGMAN: Tubbo says hi as well _

_ memoryboi: hullo :D _

_ sandy: guys tubbo is smol _

_ nightmare: hi _

_ sandy: dream!  _

_ nightmare: wanted to say hi _

_ BIGMAN: meet tubbo he is very good _

_ nightmare: yeah sure _

_ nightmare: dont add anyone not from school pls _

_ BIGMAN: hes comin next term _

_ sandy: can confirm _

_ memoryboi: wait really?? _

_ BIGMAN: it will be very epic _

_ BIGMAN: YOU BETTER BE NICE TO TUBBO!!! _

_ sandy: ive only met tubbo once and i want to protect him with my life _

_ sandy: i want to protect him from tommy _

_ memoryboi: HA _

_ BIGMAN: FUCK OFF DOINT YOUEVER SYA HSIT LIKE THAT EVER AGNIA I WIL BETAT YOU TO DEAHT WIHT YMY BARE HARNDS BROOMS TICK _

_ theblade: Tommy. _

_ BIGMAN: SHIT _

_ sandy: oh god _

_ nightmare: rip _

_ habibi: bye tommy _

_ theblade: lmao nerd _

_ theblade: imagine being scared that easy _

_ habibi: techno you are terrifying _

_ memoryboi: hi techno :D _

_ theblade: hulloo _

_ habibi: who is this friend of yours tommy?? _

_ BIGMAN: TUBBO! HE IS VERY COOL _

_ 404: what the hell is going on _

_ nightmare: george!! _

_ 404: dream. _

_ habibi: oh gawd yallve got some relationship issues _

_ sappynap: hello? _

_ habibi: hey beautiful ;) _

_ sappynap: you know it ;) _

_ 404: ugh im leaving _

_ nightmare: no george :(( _

He and Tubbo laughed at the chaos that they incited, until Phil called them down to get some lunch.

The kind man was making sandwiches for everyone, and wanted to know what Tommy and Tubbo wanted. 

After a peaceful lunch, the two boys texted Ranboo and walked to the place where he said he’d meet them.

“Hey guys!” called the much taller teen, appearing from behind the tree line. 

“Hello, Ranboo!”

“Hey boob boy.”

Ranboo sighed, hunching over even more, to the point where he was almost shorter than Wilbur would be. The boy led them down the small path from which he had appeared, thin and winding, so much so Tommy couldn’t walk next to Tubbo.

“Hey big man, where are we actually going? This is like, in the middle of bloody nowhere.” Tommy complained, pushing through some nettles. 

Laughing, Ranboo replied, “Just trust me, it’s pretty cool.” 

“Don’t worry Ranboo, I trust you.” Tubbo marched along between him and Ranboo.

“So, Tubbo. Where are you moving to?” Ranboo asked, traversing some exposed flints whilst ducking under some hanging brambles.

“I don’t actually know where it is exactly, but all I know is that it’s in this village.” Tubbo answered, simply ignoring the brambles that Ranboo had to duck under.

Humming, the tall boy continued his trek up the hill, and between them Tubbo started to slow down. His first thought was that his back was hurting, since a walk like this was irritating his tucked away wings, so it must be pure agonizing hell for his friend.

“You doing okay, big T?” he asked, hoping that the boy would understand where he was coming from. Tubbo just gave him a toothy grin which ended up more of a grimace and stuck his thumb up. Not buying it, Tommy decided to whine at Ranboo to get him to slow down a bit.

“Boob boy, your legs are much longer than either of ours, please stop going so fucking fast.” he complained, slowing down as the two infront of him did.

“Oh! I’m so sorry, I completely didn’t notice!” Ranboo began to nervously apologise, “I should have known, how stupid of me.”

“Don’t worry big man, we’re good.” Tubbo reassured the man, trying for another smile, though when he turned to Tommy his eyes were wide with fear and his mouth was pressed into a thin, painful line in an attempt to endure the pain. It gave him the impression that Tubbo was in way more pain that usual, that he knew that something was up.

Not able to do anything, Tommy just hoped that the wings inside his best friend would stay that way until Ranboo’s little nature walk was over.

Thankfully, they came to the little clearing that Ranboo had described to them, Tubbo hunched over and taking tentative steps as he lowered himself to sit on the ground. Tommy was starting to really worry for his friend at this point, and he didn’t hear any of Ranboo’s rambles as he showed them the wonderful view that the flat fields provided. If Tommy had the time, he would be appreciating the vantage point, but his friend was possibly minutes away from having wings tear from inside his skin.

“And if you look over there, you can see the road the bus goes down-” Ranboo stopped talking to see Tubbo hunched over on the ground, “Oh god, are you okay?”

“He’s fine.” Tommy warned defensively, “Leave him alone.”

“Tommy… My back… it hurts so much…” Tubbo whined, the agony rendering him delirious, “Please… just make it stop…”

Something flashed in Ranboo’s eyes, a recognition and a memory. The boy went from scared and confused to distant and strong in a flash, rushing to Tubbo’s side and taking his hand, “Hey, Tubbo, it’s me, Ranboo. Do you know what’s happening?” Did Ranboo know? Does Ranboo have wings like him?

Frozen, Tommy watched as Tubbo writhed in pain and his new friend sat with a blank expression, muttering reassuring phrases to the boy.

Tommy forced himself to rush forwards and grab Tubbo’s two hands, snatching him from the tall boy, “Tubbs, you are okay. Are you fine with me holding your hands? Are you good with me touching you?” he asked, aware that in his state Tubbo might not react well to being held. In one quick movement, the small boy latched onto him and dug his fingers into Tommy’s shirt, sobbing and hiccupping. Not even bothering to look away from his friend to check what Ranboo was doing, Tommy held Tubbo closer as his cries rang out over the peaceful clearing. Pheasants burst from their roosts in the trees, the bright sunshine making the grass glow a luminescent green. The guttural cries of Tubbo mixed with the joyful birdsong.

“It’ll be over soon, Tubbs. Just hold on to me.” he reassured, tightening his grip on his friend. He buried his face as Tubbo convulsed and sobbed, going silent for a instant, then letting rip a horrifying scream before collapsing into Tommy’s arms with blood streaking down his shirt.

It was over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow that was (for the most part) sickly sweet and full of family fluff. Also it's valentines day tomorrow and all I want to do is write dreamnoblade.  
> And I'm actually not sorry for that cliffhanger because I have literally spent and entire day on this so deal with it.  
> Also thanks for the love??? This fic blew up and I- thank y'all so much for the kind comments! I try to reply to every single one and I love chatting in the comments! I am super open to suggestions for this little story, if you have any headcanons I would love to hear them and most likely write about them.


	4. Tubbo comes over (Pt 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tubbee, or not Tubbee, that is the question.  
> (i promise it's actually answered this time)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aha this was so much fun to write :D  
> We get some lovely sleepover scenes without any sadness at all, all sadness is banished to the first scene.   
> There is also baking. And cookies. And Tubbo being Tubbo.  
> :D

The grip on his shirt loosened, and his friend slumped against his chest. For a moment Tommy thought he might’ve passed out, but then Tubbo began to whimper nonsensical phrases into his ear, lost in all the pain.

Carefully, he peeled the sodden shirt from Tubbo’s back and glanced around the clearing. He didn’t see Ranboo. Good, Tommy didn’t want him near his friend when he was like this. Once Tommy could get a good look at the wings on Tubbo’s back, he bit back a small cry. There was so much  _ blood, _ Tubbo was in so much pain. But the transparent, thin and slender wings that unfolded from under his shirt were all worth it. There were two on each side, the top one wider than the bottom one, with thin dark lines running through them in intricate symmetrical patterns. They gleamed in the bright afternoon light, the blood winking with painful crimson smattering the fragile, transparent surface. 

“Bee wings…” Ranboo breathed, somehow sitting next to him. Tommy didn’t even jump, he just held the boy in his arms as if he might crumble into a million little pieces at any given moment. 

“Tubbs, I’ve got you.” Tommy whispered, ignoring Ranboo, “You can wake up now.”

“I’m not asleep…” he rasped, voice hoarse from crying, “I’ve got bee wings now.” he smiled, bright and genuine. Humming, he held the boy a little closer before finally releasing him, meeting the bright blue eyes that were lined with violent red from crying.

“Yes, Tubbo. You’ve got bee wings.” he chuckled, trying to stop himself from starting to cry. Turning to Ranboo, he said, “Do you know about this?”

Ranboo took a long gulp, then started to speak, voice slightly shaky, “I- Well, yes. I didn’t think anyone else was like me. My- I’m- I’ve got wings, is what I mean.” he stammered, hands shaking as he half heartedly gestured. So he did have wings. Tommy was slightly shocked, but he had a hunch that Ranboo was like him. It was something about him, maybe the way he stood or the little mannerisms that wouldn’t make sense otherwise. Maybe it was some weird bird shit, Tommy didn’t know. Phil might, though. 

“Well, I’ve got wings as well.” he stated, standing up and taking Tubbo’s shirt, “So do Techno, Wilbur and Phil.” he wrung the blood out of the shirt, too tired to be horrified by the sheer amount that Tubbo seemed to have lost.

Ranboo looked rather like someone had just revealed a life changing fact to him, he just kind of stared off into the distance over Tommy’s head, that or he was freaked out by the blood and was doing some weird trauma coping mechanism shit. He couldn’t care less, he was focused on looking after his friend.

After wiping down the worst of the blood with Tubbo’s old shirt and throwing some twigs and leaves over the puddle, Tommy deemed him clean enough to walk home. Instead of going shirtless, Ranboo offered Tubbo his peculiar Hawiian shirt, which Tubbo put on backwards since he didn’t want to try and tuck his wings in. They did up a few buttons on the back, carefully avoiding crushing his fragile wings, enough to hold the too big shirt up.

Ranboo was wearing only a tank top underneath, and it didn’t cover the suspicious looking scars from which his wings had sprouted. 

“Come on man, we’re in the middle of the forest. I’ve shown you a photo of my wings, why can’t I see yours?” Tommy whined, sat down in the clearing with Tubbo resting beside him. They had decided to let Tubbo rest for a little while before heading back.

Ranboo ducked his head, tightening the grip on his arms wrapped around his chest, “I- I really don’t understand why you’re so insistent.” he mumbled. 

“I want to see them too.” croaked Tubbo, flashing the taller boy a weak smile. Something seemed to break inside Ranboo, and he sighed before straightening up and taking a deep breath.

Two magnificent wings unfurled from Ranboo’s back, outermost feathers striped in bright white with the rest of them a deep, rich black. They were wide and spread further than Tommy’s, almost as huge as Techno’s wings, and gleamed in the sunlight. When he turned around, Tommy could see the glorious white stripes where the wings joined onto Ranboo’s back. Though beautiful, they were nowhere near as well maintained as Phil’s, and took on a much more dull and sullen appearance than Phil’s strikingly iridescent wings. 

“Wow.” Tubbo breathed, exhaustion evident in his tone. Tommy began to wonder whether it would be wise to text Techno or someone to carry Tubbo home.

“Dude, they’re massive.” Tommy smirked, “They’re bigger than mine for christ's sake!”

Apologising, Ranboo tucked his wings slightly closer into his body and hunched over again, as if trying to make himself smaller. It was infuriating, the boy was so tall yet all he did was hide and try to disappear. 

“Do you think you can walk, Tubbo?” Tommy asked, standing up and lending the brunette a hand. He took it, grip weak and hands sweaty, and pulled himself up to standing. Swaying slightly, Tubbo flashed him a tight smile and tried to stand on his own, taking a few steps then slumping backwards into Ranboo, knees buckling. The taller boy flinched, but held him sturdily and lowered him to the grass.

Tubbo groaned, “Ouch… My head feels all fuzzy…” he rubbed a hand over his sickly pale face, “Tommy… you should carry me.”

“We should get Techno up here.” Tommy said to Ranboo, “You call him, Ranboob. He seems to like you.” the plan seemed simple until he realized the man probably wouldn’t have any idea where this place was, “Wait, how is Techno gonna find us?”

Ranboo, holding his phone in shaky dual tone hands, smiled and said, “It’s okay, Techno showed me this place, so he, uh, he knows it.”

Tommy raised an eyebrow, then sat next to the ill looking Tubbo as Ranboo begged Techno to come over to the clearing, about how it was an emergency. It took the man all of ten minutes until he was jogging into the clearing, panting heavily from just sprinting up a hill.

“What happened?” he asked, monotone just as flat as usual. 

“Tubbo’s wings grew out!” Tommy shouted, “He’s lost too much blood for us to walk back.”

At the mention of blood, Techno stilled. There was the faintest expression that flashed over his face, then he settled back on his usual deadpan, “Did you clear it up?” he asked with heightened urgency.

Tommy nodded, showing Techno to where Tubbo was slumped over in the grass. As he slung the boy over his shoulder, Ranboo hovered around them with his constant fidgeting and nervousness, his wings still out. Techno seemed unphased by the fact that Ranboo had wings, maybe he already knew.

“You both are gonna need to tuck these wings away before we get onto the main path. We could slip these bee wings under a shirt, but Ranboo, you’re gonna need to put those away.” Techno stated, walking towards the path that led out of the clearing, “Those are nice wings, Ranboo. They look in dire need of a preenin’ though.” Techno said nonchalantly. They fell silent after that, Ranboo tucking his wings beneath his skin and Tubbo falling asleep in Techno’s arms. Tommy was in too much residual shock to converse, his mind still hung up on Tubbo’s screams and cries, playing them over and over in his head like some sort of melody stuck in his head. Though the worst of it was over, he still kept glancing at Tubbo to make sure the boy was alright, only to be met with the serene expression of someone sleeping. 

Ranboo seemed to go quiet as well, though this wasn’t as out of character as it was for him, since the tall boy tended to stay silent in a lot of situations. It was even more usual for Techno, the man hardly uttering a word each break at school until someone threatened him or Ranboo.

They eventually made it to the main path, Tubbo flattening his wings against his back so that Techno could put Ranboo’s Hawiian shirt on the right way round to hide the wings that jutted out of his back. They got a few odd looks, but made it home without being bothered by anyone.

Ranboo waved goodbye to him, Tubbo and Techno, scampering off to his own place, leaving them with a tired Tubbo and no idea how to tell Phil.

* * *

“So boys. What you’re saying is, Tubbo’s wings grew out in a clearing in the middle of the forest? Where someone could’ve seen it?” Phil asked, voice edged with authority and threat that Tommy was yet to see from the often kind man. Pushing down his fears, he tried to focus on the instincts that told him Phil was a part of the family, that he wouldn’t ever do anything bad to Tommy.

He nodded, holding Tubbo close to him again, as if he were protecting the boy.

Sighing, Phil brought a hand to his face, then sat down on the armchair opposite the couch him, Tubbo and Techno were all curled up on. Wilbur was sitting on the stairs, watching over everything like the weirdo he was. 

“Okay… You’re so lucky that no one caught you.” Phil said, obviously tired of his sons’ antics, Tommy not helping the mix, “Well, at least that’s done and over with. And he’s got bee wings, as expected.”

“How did he know?” Tommy asked, truly confused at how the boy guessed at what kind of wings he had.

The winged man gave a gentle smile, “Well, it’s possible him being a bee hybrid meant that he felt a kind of connection with bees, therefore he had a feeling that he would get bee wings.” Phil stated, it made much more sense suddenly. 

“So, are there other kinds of hybrids?” Tommy intrigued, “You said Tubbs was a bee hybrid, so surely there’s other kinds?”

“Well,” Phil began, “there are other kinds, but none that aren’t wingfolk. I think it’s to do with the fact that wingfolk have adapted to be able to hide their hybrid features. Theory of Evolution explains the rest, I guess.” he said solemnly. 

It made sense, though Tommy didn’t want to believe it. There was probably a reason why there were so many werewolf films, his mind helpfully supplied. 

* * *

Tubbo woke up in time for dinner, though he was slightly groggy, the sleepover wouldn’t be cancelled over something like this. For dinner, Phil had bought a load of pizza and some garlic flatbread that Wilbur seemed to really like. Tubbo seemed content chewing on some pizza, binging Disney movies and cuddling with Tommy. Everyone in the room had their wings out, even Techno, and they were all curled up with each other in one massive pillow fort. Tubbo had nestled in his lap, and Tommy had wrapped his wings around Tubbo. Wilbur was pressed gently against his side, Techno leaning on his other side with one of his huge wings wrapped around his back and managing to stretch all the way to Wilbur. Phil was next to Techno, completely wrapped up in his other wing. It was so very warm and Tommy’s whole body tingled with the sensation of being  _ loved.  _ Eventually, they ended up falling asleep.

* * *

Breakfast sounded heavenly right now. His legs were both numb, prickling slightly with pins and needles, and he cursed his shitty circulation. Shifting slightly, careful as to not stir the still sleeping Tubbo, he attempted to get some blood flow to his legs. Frustratingly, his effort as to not wake Tubbo was futile, the boy blinking his eyes open and smiling sleepily up at Tommy.

“Mornin’ big man…” he slurred sleepily, eyes still half closed, stuck in limbo between sleep and awareness. 

Tommy, giving up not disturbing Tubbo, dumped the boy on the couch and wriggled his toes and legs, wincing at the strange sensation, “Do you want some breakfast, Tubbs?”

The boy hummed, slumping into Tommy’s side with a content sigh. God, he was clingy.

“Right, breakfast is ready guys!” Phil’s shout rang out across the house, alerting the two boys upstairs as well as those in the living room. Tubbo seemed to wake up slightly at the mention of food, sitting up straight, no longer leaning on him. 

On the small wooden table, there was hardly any space for plates, it was so chock full of food. There was a selection of cereals, fruit juices and fresh fruit including a sliced up mango that Tommy was basically drooling over. In the centre, there were warm pastries - croissants and pain-au-chocolat - enough for one each for everyone and a variety of spreads and toppings. Overall, the most wonderful continental breakfast Tommy had ever seen.

“Since we have a guest, I thought it would only be polite to have something special for breakfast.” Phil said, bustling around the kitchen with some glasses that he then set down on the table, “Hey Wil, Techno.”

Taking their own chairs, Tubbo sitting on a footrest from the living room, they all dug into the lovely selection of food. Everyone except Techno had their wings out, who was soon coaxed by Phil to let his wings out. It was a very calm and filling breakfast after last night's events.

“So! Today I was thinking we do some baking!” Phil broke the small talk and lathered a piece of toast in honey, “I’ve got a really good cookie recipe we need to try, and another recipe for millionaires shortbread.” he grinned, taking a large bite of his honey on toast.

Tommy shook some granola and some berries onto his yogurt, to Tubbo’s disgust. The boy seemed to have something against yogurt, though Tommy thought it was wonderful, and instead Tubbo had a pain-au-chocolat that he had deconstructed like a total weirdo so that he could eat most of the pastry first and then the chocolate. Wilbur also did a similar thing, the man having the strangest eating habits that Tommy had ever seen, but the most offensive thing he did was use a fork to eat his frosted corn flakes. He claimed that it tasted better that way, though Tommy just couldn’t imagine eating  _ cereal  _ with a  _ fork.  _

At least Techno and Phil ate in comparably normal ways, he thought. 

Once breakfast was finished, he and Tubbo retreated to his room for a while until Phil called them down for baking, which though he would never admit it, Tommy was unreasonably excited to make cookies. Oddly, both Techno and Wilbur had opted out of baking, instead saying they had an English project to be working on. 

“So, what do you wanna do?” Tubbo asked, sitting down on the bed, stopping himself from flopping onto his back, as to not crush his wings. He was wearing one of Tommy’s shirts with wing slits in the back, it was slightly too big for him though it didn’t hang off his shoulders like a tent.

Tommy thought for a moment, “Have you tried tucking your wings in yet?”

Tubbo shook his head, focused on picking at a loose thread on the hem of his shorts. 

“Try it, big man. I did it pretty easily, since y’know, I’m great an’ all.” he rambled, leaning back on his bed and staring up at the beams of wood on the ceiling. There was a single window in his room, and he could just see out of the corner of his eye as a swallow darted around the bright, summer sky. There was an urge to join it, to glide and soar through the air, to disappear into the clouds like he was supposed to.

Bird shit, man. His new instincts were weird.

Tubbo hummed, a look of concentration settling on his face. The wings flattened against his back, then neatly folded themselves into his skin through the still open scabs on his back. Tommy’s had healed up into two thin scars that would open up to let his wings through, he thought it kind of worked like a piercing. You keep it open long enough, and it just heals that way. Though slightly disconcerting, he was getting used to having two holes in his back.

“I did it! Look, look, they’re gone!” Tubbo beamed, smile brighter than the sun. Proudly, Tommy flashed a smile back at his friend, who tackled him in a hug. This was nice, he thought. Things were finally looking like they were going his way, and the little pessimistic voice in the back of his head was so small and outweighed by hope that it didn’t even have a tiny little say in anything he felt now. 

Maybe having wings was more of a blessing than a curse.

“Should we go onto that group chat and cause some chaos?” Tubbo asked, grabbing his phone from his pocket. Tommy thought this was a wonderful idea, turning on his phone and clicking on the group chat labelled ‘no escape’.

**_no escape_ **

_ BIGMAN: morning guys tubbo is still here _

_ memoryboi: hi tubbo! you doin okay? :) _

_ BIGMAN: yes tubbo is doing fine _

_ nightmare: what happened to tubbo? _

_ BIGMAN: nothing _

_ memoryboi: nothing  _

_ habibi: if you committed crimes it is okay _

_ nightmare: it is not _

_ theblade: you two are so suspicious _

_ habibi: which two? _

_ theblade: you know who you are _

_ memoryboi: 0-o _

_ BIGMAN: ranboob i hate your dumb emojis _

_ BIGMAN: tubbo is making me apologise _

_ theblade: tommy leave ranboo alone _

_ karlos: i haven't met tubbo yet  _

_ BIGMAN: he is really fucking clingy _

_ BIGMAN: but you say anything bad about him and i will set techno on you _

_ theblade: ??? _

_ BIGMAN: ranboob help me out here _

_ memoryboi: no?? _

_ BIGMAN: this is tubbo please ranboo  _

_ memoryboi: it is not tubbo _

_ karlos: its nice to meet you tubbo _

_ BIGMAN: he is coming to school next term _

_ karlos: wont be here will i _

_ sappynap: hey _

_ habibi: hey ;) _

_ sappynap: what is this tubbo dude like _

_ BIGMAN: he loves bees _

_ memoryboi: he is a bee _

_ BIGMAN: rainbow what the fuck _

_ theblade: lmao _

_ BIGMAN: why are you laughing twat _

_ nightmare: tubbo is a bee? _

_ BIGMAN: no!! _

_ habibi: so all this time we thought we were talking to your friend _

_ nightmare: hmm _

_ sappynap: we were talking to a bee? _

_ sandy: tubbo is smol _

_ theblade: lmao i love this _

_ memoryboi: yup same _

_ theblade: chaos should unfurl  _

_ memoryboi: pass the popcorn _

_ BIGMAN: YOU STIUPID SON OF A BITHS HEL PME TEHCNO BLASED AND REANB IOO _

_ lAngUagE!!!1!: he’s worse than skeppy (also language) _

_ sappynap: lol hi bad _

_ lAngUagE!!!1!: hello owo _

_ BIGMAN: right im leaving _

_ theblade: weak _

_ memoryboi: lame _

_ BIGMAN: SHIUT THE FUCL UP _

_ lAngUagE!!!1!: language.  _

_ BIGMAN: FUKC FUCK FUCK FUKC FUCKUCUFUFKUCUIK _

_ lAngUagE!!!1!: Does that even count? The spelling is so bad.  _

_ lAngUagE!!!1!: language, still.  _

Tommy turned off his phone, smirking at Tubbo, then he leaped off the bed and bounded down the stairs, the boy not too far behind him. Phil had called them down for baking, and boy was he excited. 

“Dude, I cannot wait to make cookies.” Tommy shouted to his friend as they sprinted into the kitchen diner.

“Hello boys!” Phil greeted them, pulling ingredients from shelves and cupboards, “So who wants to do cookies and who wants to do millionaire's shortbread?” 

“I am totally doing the cookies.” Tommy announced, glancing to his friend, hoping that Tubbo wanted to do the shortbread.

“That’s great, because I wanted to do, uh, the other one.” Tubbo smiled, genuine and kind. It made him want to smile right back.

“Okey dokey, take a bowl each, I’ll tell you the recipes, since I know them off by heart.” Phil said, gesturing to the two bowls on the worktop. One was pink and plastic, the other was china and a mix of ugly neutral tones. Each sported a battered wooden spoon.

“I wanna use the pink one.” Tubbo pouted, snatching the pink bowl from the counter. Tommy grinned and stole the pink bowl, lifting it up into the air where Tubbo couldn’t reach. Unfortunately, this wasn’t just any short person, this was Tubbo, so Tommy ended up getting tackled and knocked onto the plastic fake marble tiles, much to Phil’s amusement. In the end, Tommy got the ugly, heavy bowl and Tubbo kept giving him little glances from next to him with the pink bowl.

The first thing Phil got Tubbo to do was to get 250 grams of shortbread biscuit and crush it up in his bowl, then gently microwave 55 grams of butter until it fully melted and mix it with the crumby biscuits and pack it into the bottom of a tin, then Phil stuck it into the fridge. 

Tommy was very excited about his cookies, taking the ancient analogue scales and weighing out 4 ounces of butter and the same of sugar, mixing it together in his stupid bowl. Phil then opened a can of condensed milk and got Tommy to pour in half of it, mixing it with the sugar and butter. Tubbo kept sticking his fingers into the bowl and ‘taste testing’ the dough. 

The last step was 12 ounces of self raising flour, and a little bit of cocoa powder, then a whole broken up bar of cooking chocolate. Tommy thoroughly enjoyed sticking his hands into the dough and moulding little patties of brown mush, sticking them onto the greaseproof baking tin.

By the time Tommy finished and stuck his cookies into the 180 degrees celsius fan oven, Tubbo was weighing out 150 grams of butter and the same of dark brown soft sugar for the caramel, and he stirred the pan as Phil helped him to gently heat the two ingredients on the hob until they melted together, and once that had been done Phil opened a full can of condensed milk and poured it into the pan. 

Tubbo whacked the hob on full heat, saying that in the recipe it said to bring it to a ‘rapid’ boil, which he did indeed, for around one minute. Tommy was still salty about the bowl. 

By the time Tubbo poured the hot caramel onto the cool shortbread base, Tommy’s cookies had been in the oven for around twelve minutes so he checked them. Much to his delight, his cookies were ready, so he left them on the counter to harden up so he could place them on the wire cooling rack.

Tubbo’s thing took ages to cool down, but once it did, they melted two 100 gram bars of cooking chocolate and poured it over the now set caramel. It was beautiful, and Phil chucked it in the fridge to set.

His cookies were ready now, and he and Tubbo  _ may  _ have taken one and shared it when Phil wasn’t looking. It was very good, if he said so himself. Tubbo agreed as well.

“We should totally give some of these to Niki and Eret.” Tommy said, wiping the stupid ugly bowl down, “I know Niki does a lot of baking anyway, but I’m sure she’ll love my brilliant cookies.” 

Tubbo nodded, dropping some cutlery into the drawer once he had dried them off, “I want to give one to Ranboo as well.” he added, “or maybe my million shortbread.”

“It’s a  _ millionaire's  _ shortbread, Tubbo, you idiot.” Tommy corrected, “And I’m not giving boob boy any of my cookies.”

“Okay, chill. I just wanted to thank him for helping me yesterday.” he picked up the clean pink bowl and started drying it off, “And Techno, as well, but he’s going to get one anyway.”

“What about me, Tubbs?” Tommy asked, faking hurt, “I thought I was your best friend?”

“Yes! You are my best friend, and you will definitely be getting some baked stuff.” Tubbo assured him, passing the pink bowl to Phil to put away in the top shelves. Tommy found it rather funny how Tubbo couldn’t reach the top shelves.

“So, Phil, what time does Tubbo get to stay until?” he asked, washing the last spoon then leaning nonchalantly on the counter.

“Well, we’re meant to drop him off around midday, so we’ll leave in half an hour probably.” Phil answered, “Sorry he’s got to leave so soon, but don’t you have something to do, Tubbo?”

The boy nodded, “Yes, Eret is taking me and Niki to a local festival place, it’s at this farm and they’ve got live music and stuff.” he ranted excitedly, “They say it’s sibling bonding time.” 

Tommy nodded, knowing how important ‘sibling bonding time’ was to those three. But the festival did sound pretty cool, and Tommy would’ve loved to go.

“No, Tommy, you’re not going.” Phil warned, “You’ve got a week full of exams to study for. It’s the end of the year, so they’re making you do all your end of unit assessments.”

He groaned, but knew that it was a fair point. There were only a few weeks left of school, and he knew that most of them would be a weird mix of exams on subjects he hadn’t been taught and tired teachers showing barely subject related movies.

He and Tubbo found some clothes to wear, both getting ready quickly so that they could leave on time and not piss off Phil, since that would not be a great end to a crazy sleepover. 

Mission not piss off Phil went rather well - they put the baked goods into a plastic Celebrations tub, they got ready on time, they didn’t mess with Techno or Wilbur - it went much better than Tommy ever expected. They got to Tubbo’s house quickly and parked up in the little car park that was in front of the rows of flats.

“Hey Niki! We’re here to return one Tubbo!” Phil shouted as he knocked on the door. The person who opened the door was most definitely not Niki, no, they were much taller and had curly brown hair and tired, brown eyes.

“Hey, Tubbo!” Eret greeted, holding their arms open for the boy to tackle them in one of his hugs, “How was your sleepover?” they smiled fondly, leading everyone up the steep set of stairs and past all the boxes into the main room.

“You must be Eret!” Phil said. Instead of listening to whatever they were talking about, Tommy sat down on the couch which Tubbo quickly joined him on, curling up next to him like the clingy bitch he was. 

“I can’t wait to move into our house.” Tubbo whispered, hope and content lighting up his tone. Everything seemed like it was working out, Tommy thought. He had a semi permanent place to stay that he was happy in, he had his best friend moving next to him, he had a brother to annoy the shit out of and one to look up to (and annoy, but cautiously), he had a good friend group at school and his teachers seemed to not hate him (this was a first). 

Maybe the universe didn’t hate Big Man TommyInnit. 

“So.” Phil said, sitting on the dining chair with his cup of tea, looking over the living room with him and Tubbo curled up in one corner of the couch and Eret sat in the other, and Niki sat in the armchair with her legs crossed. 

“Something happened on Saturday.” Phil continued, “Tubbo, do you want to show them?”

Tommy shifted away from his friend to allow him to take off his jumper and reveal the tank top under it, letting the pair of dainty bee wings unfurl from his back. Niki looked shocked, but not as terrified as Eret. They seemed to be frozen in time, a look of sheer horror painted on their face and stuck there. 

“I got bee wings!” Tubbo beamed, the wings flitting happily behind him. Niki laughed breathlessly, Eret staying silent.

“Tubbo is a bee hybrid. I’ve got Raven wings, Tommy has those of a Green Woodpecker, Wilbur has Swallowtail butterfly wings and your little brother has these bee wings.” Phil informed them, smiling proudly, “We’re all wingfolk, secretly.”

Eret opened their mouth to speak, closing it again, then cleared their throat, “Is this real?” they laughed slightly, more of a deep, gasping sight than anything else, then said, “Holy shit, this is real.” they ran a hand through their fluffy hair, “I- That’s very cool, Tubbo. And- You- Tommy, all those times you stayed over?” they asked, looking over at him with an incredulous expression.

“Nah, I got mine on the first night at Phil’s, thankfully. Though my back did hurt like a son of a bitch on that last night.” he smirked, seeing how shocked Eret looked at his casual tone.

“I mean-” they sighed, “Cool. This is cool.” Finally relaxing, they smile at Phil, “I think I might need a little explanation, but this is pretty cool with me.”

So Phil told Eret most of the things that Tommy already knew, a few bits he didn’t. They almost forgot to give them the cookies.

That would have been a true tragedy, Tommy thought. They ate the cookies with some more tea, Niki complimenting the consistency of them, to Tommy’s delight. 

“Right! We should be on our way.” Phil announced after downing the last dregs of his tea, “Say bye, Tommy.” 

He rolled his eyes, he wasn’t a child. Before he could even finish rolling his eyes, he was wrapped up in a Tubbo hug. 

“I’ll see you in the summer holidays, big man.” Tubbo assured him, “Goodbye for now, Tommy.”

He was also hugged by both Niki and Eret, then Phil jokingly hugged him, but Tommy, though he would never admit, was glad he did. Any hugs were good, even joking hugs. 

When they got back, Tommy made sure to put a piece of Millionaire’s shortbread and a cookie into a tub for Ranboo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I couldn't hurt you guys by not giving you Tubbee :))  
> If y'all were wondering, Ranboob is a Magpie. They are very pretty.   
> The recipes in this are totally real and are very delicious, you should totally try the cookies, they are so bloody simple. Literally just sugar, butter, condensed milk and sr flour. Please they are so good.
> 
> I was considering having Eret actually be a wingfolk as well, but instead of telling Niki and Tubbo, they tore their wings off. It was far too angsty. They would've had dragonfly wings. If you want to write about that, or if you want me to write about that, go ahead and pop a little comment down there 
> 
> Last thing from me: MASSIVE THANK Y'ALL FOR ALL THE SUPPORT ON THIS WORK!!!!! AHH I'M SO HAPPY THERE'S SO MANY LOVELY COMMENTS FROM Y'ALL I MIGHT JUST CRYY!!   
> (your comments are so nice they broke my code. f.)


	5. Eret's Secret

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (Set for the most part two years in the past - Eret is 16)  
> Eret lives with their grandfather and two siblings Niki and Tubbo.  
> Two wings appear out of nowhere, and they do not fit in.  
> (this is a little back story bit)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so this isn't really a full length chapter, but a backstory chapter. This fits in two years in the past, with a little part at the end happening during the time of Chapter four. This is much much sadder than the other four chapters, and does not have any comfort =) felt like you guys need some pain to balance out the happiness in this fic so far.  
> If this sounds slightly different to my usual writing style - I wrote this in present tense instead of past! I wanted to challenge myself, but do not worry if you don't like it, for I will be writing the majority of this in my usual style. 
> 
> CW: Blood, Self Harm, Mutilation (they rip their wings out)

Eret stands in front of the mirror, frowning. The delicate, translucent dragonfly wings flit around behind them as if they have a mind of their own. They have around two hours until their grandfather returns home, and these wings had just decided to sprout painfully from their back. Sighing, Eret pulls up a Google tab and does some furious searching, finding little to no information, except for some random blog that talked about how hybrids are real and need to be publicized. Is that what they are now? A hybrid?

They stare at their reflection, hating the bags under their young eyes and the way their shoulders slump, though worst of all the intrusive wings that twitch behind them.

The wings are not meant to be there. They are a human, not some weird, fantastical creature. They are normal. They don’t need pity, or special treatment, or anything. They just want to be a normal human, for people to treat them as a normal person. 

Taking one of the wings in their hands, they tug gently on it, flinching at the rush of sensation, but grounding themselves on the realness of the pain. 

They need to be there for their siblings, their grandfather doesn’t need them burdening him any longer that they need to. Having wings would be too much to juggle along with school, work and family. 

Most importantly, they need to be strong for their siblings. If they got taken away by some government testing facility, they couldn’t be there for Niki and Tubbo.

Eret notices the small tear they had caused in the fragile wings a little too late, stifling a small scream as the shockwaves of pain wring through their body. 

Once it is over, they turn around and inspect how the wings are attached to their body. They consist of two separate wings each side: the top one thinner and longer, attaching via a small point and the bottom one wider and slanting down, attaching in the same way as the other. It can’t be that hard to just… pull them out?

Eret grabs the packet of value razors, finding an unused one and carefully deconstructing it, being mindful as to not cut their fingers. They hope they can do this cleanly and quickly, though most things never seem to go as they hope.

Armed with the small blade and nothing more, they turn their back to the mirror and twist around so they could grab at the top wing. Raising the small blade in their right hand, grabbing the right wing with their other hand, they brace for the pain.

This was the right decision, they can’t have wings. They need to protect Niki and Tubbo, they need to be mature and provide for their family. They are human.

Eret presses down on the joint, gasping out loud then biting their lip to silence themself. If anyone hears, they’re done for. Pulling with their left hand and hacking at the wing with their right, they realise that this is not going to be easy. Their lip was already split from biting down on it, and static was dancing in their vision, teasing them. It would probably take around ten more seconds until Eret passes out. 

In a moment of determination, they hone in on the sting of their split lip, the metallic taste and burn easier to bear than the searing pain in their back. They want these stupid wings gone, they want to be strong and mature and dependable and-

_ Snap  _

A choked sob gurgles up their throat, spilling from their bloody, stinging lips and sending tremors through their body. Tears stream down their face, dropping onto the linoleum and mixing unceremoniously with the blood. 

In their hand is a wing. It is transparent but shimmers with iridescence, with veins running through its fragile surface in delicate, black lines. There is copious amounts of blood on the beautiful wings. It runs along the veins in small droplets, splattering onto the floor with a dull dripping sound.

Eret opens their eyes, met with the grey bathroom ceiling and pain running through their blood in all their body. It feels like they’re made of pain, every breath is agony and even opening their eyes makes them think death would be a kinder punishment.

Images of Niki and Tubbo flash into their mind, reminding them why they are doing this. 

_ It’s to protect them.  _

Shakily, they sit up and take in their surroundings. The black rectangle, that their brain tells them groggily is their phone, is laying on the floor face down, so they lean across to grab it, grimacing at the spike of pain as they move. That whole ordeal had cost them twenty minutes. Which means they need to speed up if they don’t want to be caught.

Shivering slightly, they reach into the medicine cabinet and fish out some of their grandfather’s painkillers, vision too blurry to read the small text on the pack, though they had read it once or twice when they were bored and brushing their teeth. It’s probably not the best idea, but if they could take the edge off the agony then this would be a lot easier.

Eret takes two pills, not even noticing the foul taste, without any water. It would be around forty odd minutes until the painkillers kick in, so they suppose they should clean up some of the blood before it dries up. Taking a wad of toilet paper and wetting it slightly, they get down on all fours and begin to wipe down the bloody floor. Time seems to run off, the painkillers already dulling the sharp prickling in their back. They suppose they should really get onto the left wing, so they pick up the blade from the deconstructed razor and this time take it in their left hand, holding the wing in their right. It is much less painful this time, and their thoughts aren’t racing quite as fast. 

They feel like they’re watching some fucked up TV show.

It is just as horrifying when the pain wrings out their body like a wet rag, dripping blood and tears onto the floor once again, though this time it is the floor of the large bathtub. They sit down this time so if they faint, it wouldn’t give them another dull headache like earlier.

This time their face is deadpan and unreactive as the wing is torn from its joint, the only giveaway that they actually felt it being the sharp breath they suck in. 

Eret looks in the mirror. They only have two wings now, and something inside him mourns the two bent up and blood covered wings that now sat in the bathtub. But no, they had to keep going. They had to be strong for their siblings, mourning the wings that don’t belong on their back is selfish. The wings  _ do not _ belong on their back, they are a  _ human _ , not some hybrid.

Tears begin to slice down their cheeks again, and they slip their bloody hands into their hair. This is right, this is the logical thing to do, so why does it feel so inherently  _ wrong _ ? Why is every cell in his body screaming at them for doing such a thing as ripping their wings off, when it is the logical decision to do? Sobs wrack their body, and they pick up one of the orphaned wings and grip it tightly in their hands, watching tears drop onto their fingers, and they pull. They rip that wing into small shards of iridescent membrane, ignoring the instincts that cried out for them to stop, twisting the wing as if to get back at it for causing them so much pain. It is a pathetic, vengeful act, and it only makes them feel worse. 

Half of them is screaming, begging for them to stop, with the other half cheering them on and taunting them for being so selfish. This is the right decision, the wings are not human, they are not theirs-

_ These wings are a part of you! It is who you are! _

They almost scream again, instead taking a firm grip of the joint on the right bottom wing and tugging until there is a wet  _ pop  _ and dull pain burns through their body like a building on fire. They are alight, and the clash of emotions is silent for but a moment as the pain dominates all their thoughts. Even with the painkillers, it only takes the edge off the residual pain, so the sharp burn of pain is still sickening enough to send them into shock again, especially with how impulsive it had been.

Eret’s brief moment of respite is over when their body screams at them again for tearing the third wing from their body, but the strange calm washes over them and they once again feel as if they are watching some peculiar TV show, sensations dull and thoughts distant. 

They had to pull out the final wing. There is no way they can slice it like they did with the other two, they can’t reach that far behind them with the razor. They are going to have to yank this one out as well.

Gripping the joint in their bloody hands and tuning out all the contradicting emotions, Eret tears the final wing from their body with a quick jerk of their hand. It hurts the most this time, their back is on fire already, their nerves feel like lava, every touch feels like a molten hot knife trailing along their skin. They can’t stifle the scream that it rips out of them.

They had passed out again. Eret opens their eyes, met once more with the slightly mouldy bathroom ceiling and magnolia walls. Sitting up, they notice they are in the bathtub, a pool of dried blood surrounding them. 

They should shower.

Water on fresh wounds is hell. It’s not that bad since it keeps them grounded and overrides all the clashing emotions, but still. They feel distant, like their brain is stuck still processing everything. It isn’t a bad thing per se, just strange. 

They finish off in the shower, and catch themself in the mirror. Relief clashed with grief at the absence of the dragonfly wings, but overall they felt glad that they can now go back to their normal, human life. That’s it, right? They are fine now, they can forget this ever happened and they would go to work tonight, instead of sleeping they would catch up on all their studying they missed doing  _ this _ , then they would go to school like usual.

It is a flawless plan, really. 

Reluctantly, Eret picks up the crushed wings and stuffs them in a bin bag, tying a knot with the handles and they bid the wings farewell as they chuck them by the door to take out once they have dressed themself.

It is odd, really. Smiling at Niki in the corridor whilst they also feel like they could collapse if someone so much as touches them. Throwing a bag full of something that had been attached to him just two hours ago into the bin. 

Just as they are doing that, a car pulls up and an old man climbs out. His face is scrunched up like he had eaten a lemon, though it seems to stay like that constantly. 

“Get inside, boy. You should be studying.” their grandfather says, getting out of the car and stalking up the steps to his front door.

“I’m very sorry, I was taking out the rubbish.” they say. It’s not a lie, though it’s not the complete truth. He just tuts and mutters to himself. 

Eret is so very, very tired.

* * *

_(present day)_

When Tubbo shows them his bee wings, they can feel the scars in his back twitch with grief, even though they are nearly two years old. When Phil speaks proudly of his winged sons, Eret feels jealousy ripple through them, tinged with regret and anger, at how accepting these people seem of their sudden revelation, the sudden switch from being a normal human to being something entirely  _ not _ . 

They find themself stuck in a strange place, not completely human but missing the wings that associated them with the wingfolk. Humans would look down upon them with disgust, wingfolk would question their choices with looks of pity and confusion. In the end, they did not tell Phil, or anyone for that matter. 

They wish they could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aha sorry not sorry :)  
> Hope that was all okay! The next full length chapter is being worked on at the moment, but I'm having some troubles with writing dialogue.  
> Next chapter will be some interaction between Tommy and Ranboo, a trip to town and a party at Dream's house (he loaded af)  
> Bye for now! And thank you for the incredible amount of Love on this fic!! Like seriously, I can't thank you guys enough. It makes me so indescribably happy to know I made someone feel happy (though this chapter aint gonna do that)  
> <333


	6. Dream's Tragic Party (Pt 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is a Japanese term: Mono no aware. It means basically, the sad beauty of seeing time pass - the aching awareness of impermanence. These are the days that we will return to one day in the future only in memories.
> 
> In which:  
> Tommy travels to town with Ranboo  
> Tommy causes chaos with the whole group in many shops  
> Dream has a huge house and they have a sleepover/party there  
> There's a pool  
> Stuff happens

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey so this is really long lmao  
> It took me all day and now my Google doc is at 100 pages :D I also made all the names in the groupchat bits in bold so that took me half an hour lmao  
> Also my laptop is too close to dying rn so I'm typing at crazy speed :)))  
> Anyway, this chapter isn't really enough to apologise for making y'all cry last chapter, but I promise the next one will be :)
> 
> CW: Slight Drowning, Mild Panic

Tommy bounded down the concrete steps that led up to the entrance of the school, laughing as Ranboo almost tripped over his own feet trying to keep up with him. They were leaving for the last time this term and instead of boarding the stuffy bus, they would be joining the whole group chat on a trip into town, then they would go back to Dream’s place since he was ridiculously rich and had a massive house. Phil had given him permission, and Tommy had bullied Ranboo into coming. 

“Fuck you school! I’m not coming back until six weeks later!” he cried, much to the amusement of Ranboo, who just laughed and glanced around at the kids who were looking at them. This was going to be awesome, Tommy could feel it.

“Hey Ranboo, you looking forward to the party at Dream’s tonight?” Tommy asked as they crossed the car park.

“Yeah, can’t say my parents are though.” he muttered, “I had to beg them basically, then ended up having to do loads of chores just so that I could come tonight.” Ranboo laughed, matching his pace with Tommy’s. 

“Okay big man, whatever you say.” he grinned with barely contained excitement, following Ranboo out of the school gates and onto the pavement.

“So are we going by train?” Ranboo asked, glancing around at all the other kids who were leaving in groups.

“Of course, dumbfuck. The train leaves at around ten to four, so we’ve got a while until we need to be at the station. I say we stop at the Co-op and snag some snacks for the ride!” Tommy shouted, walking slightly faster, if only to be in front of Ranboo. The boy nodded, crossing the road and slipping into the small path that cut through the residential area and landed them near the shop and train station.

They got the Co-op in no time, the place already crowded with students, Tommy recognising a few faces, choosing to ignore them since the whole group chat had agreed to meet up once they were in town, and only then. 

“I’m going to buy some cola, you find whatever the fuck you want.” he said, searching the fridge for his favourite drink, smiling with relief when he found it. Ranboo got a few weird looks from some younger kids, to which Tommy gave a glare, channeling his inner Technoblade and towering over the tiny kids. He would never tell Ranboo that he cared about him, but those thirteen year olds had it coming, and someone had to teach them not to stare at his peculiar, lanky friend. 

Once he had paid for his drink, they left, Ranboo having not bought anything. They walked up to the train station and Tommy convinced Ranboo that they didn’t need to buy tickets, since the train would be so packed that no one would check.

“But are you sure?” Ranboo asked for about the tenth time.

Rolling his eyes, Tommy answered, “Yes, but only if you shut the fuck up about it.” 

Ranboo hunched over even further, wringing his dual tone hands together and glancing around.

“Hey Ranboo?” Tommy said after a while.

“Yeah?”

“Is your weird skin condition on your arms as well?” he didn’t actually remember seeing Ranboo’s arms, and the boy had a white cotton shirt he had changed into in the school bathrooms along with three-quarter-length canvas trousers, showing the mottled skin on his ankles. It was horrifyingly hot and humid today, and Tommy would have worn a tank top if it weren’t for the two holes in his back, instead opting for his signature red and white tee. 

“Um, yeah.” he stammered, wrapping one of his hands around his thin wrists, “It’s on, um, most of my body, actually. It tends to be, uh, relatively symmetrical. Like, I’ve got a big patch on each elbow.”

He nodded, scowling at some dumb kids messing around too close to the tracks and took a long sip of his soda. Ranboo was obviously uncomfortable, and Tommy didn’t want to push, but he was just  _ curious.  _

Just as he was about to ask Ranboo to see the patches on his elbows, a train rushed by, sighing to a stop in front of them. He downed his cola and climbed in, telling Ranboo to hold on to part of his shirt to avoid losing him, not that he could easily lose the unnaturally tall teenager. 

“I hate this.” Ranboo chuckled, pressed up against the window and some strangers. Tommy nodded, the train was hot, sticky and full of teenagers. It didn’t make for the most pleasant of experiences.

A bunch of rowdy year eights shoved into him, “Watch it, dickheads.” he shouted at the stuck up kids, who just laughed and shoved past Ranboo who hit his head on the ceiling, making Tommy cackle. 

“Come on man, this really isn’t funny.” he begged, “Seriously! Tommy, I am in about three different types of pain right now.” Ranboo joked, rubbing his head where he had hit it. 

Thankfully, the journey only took around ten minutes, Tommy pulling out his phone and texting the groupchat.

**_no escape_ **

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : on the train rn w ranboob _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : <Photo of a very crowded train. It is full of high schoolers and there is no space to stand.> _

**_theblade_ ** _ : oh god that looks horrible _

**_sandy_ ** _ : lol good luck _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : tommy didnt buy any tickets is this okay _

**_karlos_ ** _ : its fine no one checks on the last days _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : hey is everyone okay with just tonnes of pizza at the party _

**_sandy_ ** _ : sounds good  _

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : better be good pizza _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : i dont mind what food there is :) _

**_theblade_ ** _ : i still dont know why you invited me _

**_theblade_ ** _ : im literally the least social person _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : well youre coming _

**_BIGMAN:_ ** _ ranboob is probably the only other person who could rival you on that title _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : :( _

**_theblade_ ** _ : he could try but i doubt it _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : is anyone gonna moan about pizza? _

**_sandy_ ** _ : no of course not _

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : who the fuck would moan about pizza _

**_lAngUagE!!!1!_ ** _ : language.  _

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : fuck you bbh _

**_lAngUagE!!!1!_ ** _ : language, and that’s mean :( _

**_skehpky_ ** _ : hwo was meand to badboyhalo _

**_skehpky_ ** _ : tommy iwail baet you  _

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : you cant even spell beat how will you actually do it _

**_theblade_ ** _ : lol nerd _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : techno i want to fight you :( _

**_theblade:_ ** _ no.  _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : :( _

**_sandy_ ** _ : lol drag him techno _

**_theblade_ ** _ : would it make everyone happy if i beat dream to a pulp tonight _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : :) _

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : i love violence _

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : and women _

**_sandy_ ** _ : tommy no _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : tommy youve never been near a woman in your life _

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : NEITHER HAVE YOU RAN BOOB YOU VE GOT BOOB IN YOU R NAME OF COURS W YOU HAVTENT BEEN ENEAR A FWOOMENA IN YOU LIEKE GUCK YOU FUKC YOU FKUC YOU FUCK YOU  _

**_theblade_ ** _ : take it back tommy or face consequences _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : my name doesn’t even have boob in it??? _

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : i apologised irl okay _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : liar _

**_theblade_ ** _ : Tommy. _

**_sandy_ ** _ : lol run _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : bye bye tommy _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : hes mean to me :( _

**_theblade_ ** _ : see you at the party tommy _

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : TRAIN IS AT OUR STOP GTG BY ETECH NO NICE TKALING TO YO UBEY _

Grabbing hold of Ranboo, Tommy shoved the taller boy in front of him and used him as a kind of battering ram to try and charge forward through the massive crowd of teenagers. 

“Tommy, what are you doing?” he shouted, “Dude, I’m gonna die-”

They spilled out onto the platform, both laughing. 

“Come on Boob boy, we’ve gotta get to the meeting place before anyone else!” Tommy cried, grabbing Ranboo by the wrist and dragging him through the crowds, ignoring the cruel glances that the other kids sent their way. He was pumped, and ready to cause some chaos with his friends. 

“Tommy, please can you let go of my arm?” Ranboo begged once they had escaped the majority of the crowd, not resisting him as he pulled the boy forward. Tommy took a quick look at Ranboo, who was hunched over due to the height difference and looked mildly terrified. Recognising the expression that he had on his face with horrible ease, Tommy dropped the wrist immediately. 

“Sorry big man, you good?” he asked, stalking up the hill with barely hidden guilt. Ranboo just hummed and nodded, slipping his hands into his pockets and following behind him.

Just in time to break the tense silence, a familiar voice called out his name, “Tommy!” It was Dream, standing there with Sapnap and Karl, “Ranboo!” he shouted again, the boy whipping his head around at record speed. Tommy didn’t miss the flinch, but knew not to comment on it. Ranboo just seemed like a very jumpy kid, he justified, though his gut swirled with concern and a kind of sad understanding. 

“Big D! My friend!” he called out, running over to the group, “Could you do me a favor and protect me from Technoblade?”

“No, but I’m sure Ranboo could help you with that.” Dream smirked, walking off towards the little shop they’d agreed to meet up by, Sapnap and Karl following. 

Tommy pleaded Ranboo to convince Technoblade not to kill him, but his efforts were futile. Maybe he shouldn’t call Ranboo ‘boob boy’ when trying to persuade him.

They soon arrived at the shop, a slightly tacky looking convenience store, where they had agreed to meet up. Along with him, Ranboo and the three they met on the way, there was Wilbur and George waiting there with no sign of Techno.

“Hey guys!” he shouted to the two already waiting, “I am here with Ranboob and some other people!” Sapnap and Karl came from beside him and greeted George and Wilbur, Dream smiling fondly at George. Ranboo waved timidly and seemed to curl in on himself even more, somehow, to the point where he was shorter than Wilbur. 

Dream texted the groupchat, reminding whoever was left to get over here. Skeppy and Bad arrived promptly, with only Techno, Fundy and Quackity left. 

The next to arrive was Fundy, looking half asleep and more of a corpse than a human, not doing too well in the heat.

Tommy was terrified, not of Techno (well maybe slightly) but for Quackity. It was just past the meeting time, and the only two not to arrive were known for chasing each other around like cat and mouse, Techno being the cat and Quackity the mouse, specifically. 

**_no escape_ **

**_nightmare_ ** _ : techno, big q, please hurry up _

**_habibi:_ ** _ uhh _

**_sandy_ ** _ : techno stop chasing quackity around pls _

**_theblade_ ** _ : im not _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : why are you both late _

**_theblade_ ** _ : … _

**_habibi_ ** _ : help _

**_theblade_ ** _ : promise im not doing anything _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : hey techno could you please come over here? you dont have to though. there is a lot of people  _

**_theblade_ ** _ : finee but only for ranboo _

**_sandy_ ** _ : of fucking course _

**_lAngUagE!!!1!_ ** _ : language.  _

**_habibi_ ** _ : ranboo i owe you so much _

Tommy took his eyes off the group chat, seeing a boy in a beanie running up to them and turning off his phone. That meant Techno was nearby, and that meant he was about to get beaten.

“Hullo.” a deep voice said from behind him, like really fucking close, that was Technoblade, he was dead-

“Hi! Hi Techno!” Ranboo stammered, distracting the crazed man behind Tommy from actually murdering him.

“Hey Ranboo.” Techno returned in his usual monotone- wait, he didn’t sound angry at all?

“Wait, Techno, aren’t you angry with me?” Tommy asked, taking a few steps forward to distance himself from the terrifying man. Wilbur was snickering at him, so Tommy shouted, “Why are you laughing dickhead? Help me out here!” Though it was much too late, Techno had already laid a firm hand on his shoulder, his grip tightening to a slightly painful extent.

“Ouch- holy shit, you bastard, let go!” he growled, ignoring the offended ‘language’ that Bad repeated, “That hurts, asshole!” he spat, turning around and shoving the laughing Technoblade. Ranboo was laughing as well, albeit more nervously than the pink haired prick.

“Ay boob boy! You’re my friend! Defend me here, man!” Tommy cried, running from Techno and hiding behind Wilbur and Dream.

“Ha. Nope.” Ranboo smirked, “You stop calling me that, then I help you.”

“This is outrageous!” he cried, catching the attention of some strangers walking around town, who just glared at the group condescendingly and walked past. Tommy was still cowering behind Dream, Wilbur having moved away to stand with Fundy and George, who were also laughing. “I am a child, you can’t hurt me! I’ll call the police!” his begging started to descend into noise instead of words as Techno slowly approached Dream, who he was hiding behind.

“Just call me by my real name, and I’ll help you.” Ranboo smiled, crossing his arms and standing up taller than Tommy had ever seen him.

Just as Techno shoved Dream and Sapnap aside, Tommy decided that if he didn’t do what Ranboo said, he’d die at the hands of The Blade, so he grimaced and shouted, “Ranboo, you bitch! Tell Techno to stop being a twat!” 

The boy raised an eyebrow, but smiled and said, “Hey Techno? Could you please not hurt my friend Tommy? It would make me really upset if you did.” 

Reluctantly, Techno backed away from him and went and stood next to Wilbur, who swatted him lightly. 

They all eventually got over the little incident, deciding to walk around town and go cause some chaos in the shops. The first victim was the clothes shop - Primark. It was Wilbur’s suggestion that they should go to Primark and piss about, so he led them to the multi-storey building that housed the cheap clothes store. Once inside, they toured the slightly strange clothes selection, Dream basically killing his lungs by winning a game of rock paper scissors with George over whether George had to wear this dumb Minecraft t-shirt and Ranboo taking one slightly long glance at the Hawiian shirts that was noticed by Techno who literally forced him to pick out the one he wanted. It was fun, Tommy found himself thinking. This was fun, he could get used to this. 

“Hey, big Q, this one looks like you!” Tommy called out, standing next to one of the manakins which was modelling the kid’s clothes range. It had a beanie on and a navy tracksuit, which was pretty much all Quackity wore. Even in the blistering heat, the boy still wore a beanie. 

The boy cackled with laughter upon seeing the manakin, showing Karl and George whilst basically jumping around.

“Take a photo of me and this guy!” Quackity said, putting an arm around the manakin, “I’m calling him little Q!” he grinned maniacally, much to the amusement of Karl and George. Even Techno seemed to chuckle slightly, which was pretty unheard of. 

Sapnap took his phone and snapped a few photos, smirking at the ridiculousness.

“Post that to the group chat, okay?” Karl asked once the photos had been taken, “I have to cherish those.”

The shopping trip continued, until they eventually made their way to the changing rooms. Everyone had a different random item of clothing pretty much, some of them tacky and horrible, others just about passable. Tommy had one of Ranboo’s dumb Hawiian shirts, the guy had given him this bright red one and told him to put it on, which he wouldn’t have done if Techno wasn’t standing ominously close to both of them. It was really annoying, not being able to do anything to Ranboo without facing the wrath of Technoblade, but the boy seemed more relaxed than Tommy had ever seen him, so he let it slide. 

Dream’s stupid wheeze-laugh shook him from his thoughts. George had put on the stupid Minecraft t-shirt, and it was several sizes too small and horribly tacky, which sent the whole group into howling laughter. By that point George had gone an impossible shade of red, and the strangers that were just trying to go clothes shopping kept glancing at their group. Tommy couldn’t care less, this was the best time he’d had in ages. He finally felt like he belonged in a group, instead of just sitting with the weird kids for lack of a better option. These were his people, the kind that had energy for days and the few calmer friends that kept the balance. He fit in, he was on the inside. 

“Tommy! Have you tried on the shirt I gave you?” Ranboo beamed at him, looking happier than Tommy had ever seen him. He returned a fond smile, then held up the Hawiian shirt.

“I’ll go stick it on now, big man.” he darted into the changing room, and Ranboo went in the adjacent one with his own shirt. Tommy could see Ranboo’s black, tufty hair over the little plastic cubicle wall, and he could see the little flecks of white where his roots were growing in. It made him so proud, honestly, that his existence had changed so much in the jittery teen’s life, from things as little as growing out his natural hair colours to letting his wings out in front of someone. Tommy really was a big man, he grinned to himself as he slipped his t-shirt over his head and put on the thin Hawiian shirt. 

“Right, I’m done!” he announced, bursting through the curtain. He was met with Skeppy and Bad wearing matching bright yellow onesies, Wilbur trying to get Fundy to wear cat ears and Quackity having  _ at least  _ fifteen beanies balanced on his head by Karl and Sapnap. Ranboo was quietly chuckling to himself, then he looked over to Tommy and his green eyes lit up in joy.

“You wore it!” he looked like an excited puppy, “Oh my god, you actually- haha!” Ranboo was grinning like a fool, and Tommy couldn’t keep his pout for too long, breaking into a glad smile.

He got laughed at, sure, but it was kind laughter. Wilbur poked fun at him, he called Wilbur a soft boy bitch. Quackity almost pissed himself laughing, and Dream collapsed onto the shitty little bench from wheezing too hard. Ranboo was smiling and standing up almost straight, Tommy forgot that everything was temporary and content lit up the air. 

Another shop they decided to cause chaos in was Poundland. Dream had bought some of the clothes from Primark for everyone, only the reasonable ones though, as a ‘thanks for coming along’ gift. Tommy just held the red Hawiian shirt in his hands and glared at Ranboo when he laughed at him. 

Poundland was a strange store. It was mostly food, though there was a little bit of everything. 

Karl bought a concerning amount of white monster energy drinks, and Techno picked up an iced coffee which he found really strange, though Techno was born in America so it would make sense that he preferred coffee, but still. Tea is the best hot drink, and Tommy would fight for that. 

By the time they got out of Poundland, it was beginning to near the end of the afternoon, the town slowly shifting into the evening. It was crazy how they spent two hours just messing around, and the amount of chaos they caused was rather impressive. 

They got kicked out of Debenhams for Karl and Quackity playing tag on an escalator, Tommy almost managed to bring down an entire shelf in a craft store by climbing up it (but Wilbur grabbed him and Techno saved the shelf), Ranboo walked into a low doorway in the ancient sweet shop and almost got knocked out, there was so many memorable moments in those two hours. 

It was just past six in the evening, and Dream said they would arrive at his at around half past. The journey would be by bus, taking the final bus out of town and into the nearby village that Dream’s house was in.

Tommy knew that the man had rich parents, so he expected a nice place somewhere in the countryside. 

The journey was ridiculous, since all eleven of them were packed onto the same public bus, which was already packed with teens. They stood around the last two free seats, letting Dream take one of them and then having a vote to who should take the seat. Tommy, thoroughly upset that he couldn’t vote for himself, chose to vote for Ranboo since he was the only person here that he would even consider being nice to. Okay, maybe Wilbur was alright as an older brother, but Techno was shit at being a good role model and he knew it. Ranboo ended up tying with Quackity, who had convinced Karl and Sapnap to vote for him, promising he’d let them sit on his lap. Just as the bus was about to pull out, they fought a brave battle of rock paper scissors, the winner being Quackity. It was rather hilarious seeing Karl and Sapnap both perched on Quackity’s lap, Tommy admitted, and Ranboo laughed with him. 

“Okay, this is our stop.” Dream announced, much to the relief of the rest of the passengers. Karl and Sapnap crawled off of Quackity’s lap, and the rest of them piled off the bus, thanking the bus driver. Tommy shoved Wilbur and Ranboo, who were in front of him, out of the door since they were taking too long to get out, which he earned a glare from his two pseudo brothers and a panicked apology from Ranboo. 

They quickly arrived at a small track that led down through a forest, Dream claiming that it was where his house was. It took ages, to the point that Techno began to taunt Dream and say he was homeless. Though as the woods cleared, it became apparent that that was quite the opposite. It was almost a castle, and had two visible storeys, built out of rich red coloured brick. The gardens were huge and immaculate - a stream ran through the middle and kept the grass green and the young trees healthy, wildflowers lined the edges, a pristine patio glistened in the evening light and there was a decent sized pool with a wooden shed next to it that backed onto the house. It was massive, and Tommy just kind of gawked at it for a little while. 

“Holy shit…” someone said softly, Bad not even bothering with a ‘language’. He was probably thinking the exact same thing, Tommy joked to himself. 

“So, are we going to go in the pool?” he asked, grinning at Dream, “If we don’t I’m throwing a fit.”

“We should go in first.” Wilbur reasoned, walking up the gravel driveway and to the door. Most of the other people broke from their trance, following Wilbur and waiting at the door. Dream strode up to it with a smirk painted on his face.

“You’re so fuckin’ rich Dream.” Tommy muttered, to which he got a few laughs and a ‘language’. Glancing behind him, he caught the gangly Ranboo looking absolutely terrified, so he smiled at him and hoped it would be okay. If the boy needed any other reassurance, he should go to Techno, not Tommy. 

Despite the ancient building, the interior was incredibly modern style and clean, giving it the look of some kind of showhome and not an actual, lived in house. All the walls were white, the only breaks being the dark wooden beams that criss crossed through the wall. 

It was well lit, even though it was an old house and the ceiling was slightly lower than comfortable, with minimalistic LED lights leaking bright white light onto the black kitchen counters. It was an open plan kitchen diner, with an excessively large table and graceful, white chairs in one part and an L-shaped kitchen area with an island.

“I feel like I shouldn’t touch, like, anything.” Ranboo murmured, glancing around sheepishly. Tommy nodded.

“Yeah, I would have thought about it before bringing me into a place like this!” he laughed, and Ranboo agreed. 

The boy looked tense now, along with Techno who hadn’t made any snarky remarks for the past five minutes, and he had his shoulders drawn in tight. He held his elbow, tightly gripping his white shirt and said, “I’m so clumsy, my stupidly long limbs make it hard not to accidentally knock over stuff.” Tommy laughed, following Dream to a carpet lined staircase.

“Okay, so I’ll show you the second floor, which is the kid’s floor basically. The first is what you just saw - it’s kinda my mum’s floor, if you mess anything up she’ll go haywire.”

“That’s reassuring.” Techno remarked.

Dream sighed and led them through a corridor and into a decent sized room with couches, bean bags and a projector screen, “This is the movie room, or just kinda watching Netflix room really.” he showed them to another room, slightly smaller but had the floor completely covered in mattresses, pillows, bean bags and blankets. It looked like heaven, he just wanted to launch himself into it and fall asleep.

“This is our dedicated sleepover room. It’s Sapnap’s favourite room, he spends so much time just kinda lounging around in here.” Dream explained, the awe stricken faces of everyone going unnoticed by the man. 

“I dunno, looks a bit like a padded cell to me.” Techno drawled in his usual monotone. He was the only one who seemed to be able to form a coherent sentence, probably because the man had no emotions.

They toured the rest of Dream’s house, skipping past two bedrooms that belonged to his sisters but proudly showing them his. Dream’s bedroom was impressive, to say the least, lit up with LED strips along the corners of the room and a monster of a PC on a sturdy desk with a cool looking gaming chair and two monitors. Tommy wasn’t jealous, he was just admiring it. The man had a walk-in wardrobe! Like what the hell?! 

The tour was over quickly, since the rest of the group were antsy to get in the swimming pool before it got too cold, so they headed down to the wooden sheds and the pool.

“So, in these sheds there’s a sauna room, but I’m not turning it on.” Dream stated, ignoring the protests of the group, “But there’s plenty of things in the summerhouse, like inflatables and stuff.” he gestured to the wooden shed with large windows that connected to the sauna room. 

Once everyone had dissipated into their own little groups, Tommy joined Techno and Ranboo in searching for the pool floaties.

“Guys, if you do find a flamingo, then Techno must go on it first.” Tommy shouted, violently flinging open cabinets in search of inflatables.

Ranboo made a soft sound of surprise, then held up a box with a photo of a swan inflatable printed on it, “Found them!” he dug further into the cupboard, “And there’s a flamingo as well, Tommy!” he smiled, chucking the flamingo one at Tommy. 

Techno groaned from where he was leaning on the wooden slatted wall, “I’m not even getting changed into my swimwear.”

“Yes, you are!” Dream shouted from where he was rummaging around in a drawer. He pulled out an electric pump, “Everyone is! Or I kick you out.” he smirked. 

Rolling his eyes, Techno grabbed his small school rucksack and pulled out some colourful looking fabric, “These were chosen by Phil, don’t make fun of me.”

Ranboo snickered, pulling the swan floatie from its box.

“Oh, Ranboo, how could you!” Techno said sarcastically, “My favorite friend has betrayed me!”

Instead of laughing as usual, Ranboo just kind of looked confused, “I’m your favorite friend?” he asked, voice quiet and timid. Techno hummed a confirmation, staring awkwardly at Ranboo.

The boy just smiled fondly, and sniffed softly, “Thank you, it means a lot.” 

Techno looked like a deer caught in headlights, holding a bundle of atrociously bright swimwear.

“Ha! Techno, you just made a kid cry!” Tommy cackled. The two seemed to hardly notice his joke, still staring at each other weirdly.

“I- I just thought you were doing it for a gag?” Ranboo choked out, “I didn’t think you actually- haha, oh my god, I’m such an utter moron.”

Techno chuckled slightly, then dropped the bundle of fabric and walked over to Ranboo. Tommy had no idea what the man was going to do, he was rather confused by this whole ordeal, and he was sure Techno had no idea what was going on either.

Ranboo was suddenly wrapped up in a hug by the usually distant Techno, definitely not what Tommy was expecting, but it didn’t seem to be a bad thing.

“You are one of my best friends, Ranboo. Don’t forget that, okay?” Techno said, voice softer than Tommy had ever heard.

“I- I’ll try my best.” the boy smiled, voice thick from crying. 

Techno then let go and grabbed his swimwear and promptly left, face going an amusing shade of red. 

“What the fuck was all that about?” Tommy asked the boy, who just shrugged, wiped his eyes and began to unfold the pool floatie.

He raised his eyebrows, but didn’t dwell on it for much longer, instead deciding to change into his own swimwear.

“Hey boob boy, are you going to get changed? I’m leaving now, so if you want to come to the changing rooms with me then you have to go now.” Tommy offered, digging around in his school rucksack until he found the tatty swim shorts and old t-shirt. 

Ranboo, who seemed to be way too focused on the swan floatie, answered him, “No, I’m not gonna go into the pool.” 

Dream strolled in, Sapnap flanking him, carrying the pump and wearing some dumb sunglasses, “You heard what I said to Techno earlier. You either swim, or leave.” he smiled rather viciously, passing Ranboo the pump and sitting down on one of the benches. 

“I- um.” Ranboo took the pump, “I don’t really- I’m scared. Of water.” he stammered, staring at the pump as if it would help him. Tommy almost laughed at that, but made a point to stay quiet.

“Oh.” Sapnap said softly, “Well that’s okay.” he smiled, and elbowed Dream, who nodded and smiled easily.

“Yeah, it’s fine.” the man said, “I didn’t mean to freak you out with how serious I was being.” 

Ranboo laughed with Tommy at how stupid the last few interactions had been. Seriously, was anyone in this dumb group even vaguely intelligent?

Tommy took his swimwear and headed to the dedicated changing area, where he found a cubicle and slipped on his shorts, cringing at how tatty they were. He really needed to ask Phil for some new ones, but he didn’t really want to bother the man when he had been so kind.

The pool, when he got out of the changing room, was chaos. Most of the people had gotten changed, and those who hadn’t were in the changing area, so most of the boys were in the pool and splashing around.

Ranboo had finished inflating the swan floatie, and was gingerly passing it to Sapnap, who was in the pool. Wilbur was trying to convince Techno to go on the flamingo floatie, and there were about three people on a lobster inflatable. Tommy grinned at the lobster inflatable, knowing exactly what he was going to have to do to make his dramatic entrance.

He positioned himself in a lunge, smiling wide before sprinting toward the pool at full speed and launching onto the three boys on the lobster. It turns out he landed right between Karl and George, with Quackity being the other person on the floatie.

“Holy shit!” someone shouted, either George or Quackity, all three of them toppling over and landing in the water with a fantastic sound. Sapnap was laughing his ass of on a nearby swan floatie, until Tommy decided that peace was never an option and yanked the boy off his floatie, climbing up onto it and pushing off the side to escape. 

His mission complete, Tommy crawled onto the side of the pool, hoping to scamper away to Wilbur and Techno, only to be cornered by Dream and Bad. Never in his life had Tommy considered Badboyhalo scary, but good lord the man could be terrifying if he wanted to be.

“Tommy, we’re going to have to stop you there.” Bad ordered darkly.

Dream agreed, adding, “You mess with them, you mess with us.”

In a sudden moment, he was flung into the pool with a loud  _ smack  _ as his back hit the water surface. There was a brief sting, then the reminder that he had  _ massive fucking wings  _ under his back came in the form of sharp, piercing pain that made it hard to swim up. It was really hard to breathe down here, he thought, pawing at the water in a last ditch effort to reach the surface. He was aware of two, strong arms grabbing him and hoisting him up, he saw a blur of pink and it hurt  _ so bad. _

“Tommy?” a deep voice- that was Techno, Techno was speaking to him, “Tommy, try to cough for me.” Following the orders, he pushed his body to try and cough up anything, quickly losing control as the hacking and choking wrung through him, only making the pain in his back worse.

A breath was gasped up, and he felt himself drift away. 

“Tommy! Don’t you dare die, Phil would be so fucking pissed!” Wilbur shouted, and Tommy tried to gasp up another breath, finding it was slightly easier than the last one.

Slowly, he returned to a mostly aware state, the pain in his back completely gone- wait. This can’t be right. Where were his wings?

Panic rushed through his blood, causing him to start coughing again, “Where are my- my-” he gulped up some more of the sweet evening air, “They’re gone! I can’t feel my-”

“Tommy.” that was Ranboo, what was Ranboo doing here? “Tommy, man, it’s okay.”

He trusted the boy with all his soul, forcing himself to calm down and focussing on the gentle hands that were carding through his wings- oh.

His wings.

His vision finally faded into something he could focus on, the scene looking rather grim. Techno was sitting down cross legged in front of him, Ranboo next to him, Wilbur was behind him, gentle running his hands through his wings and the rest of the group looked mostly shocked and confused. 

“So, guys.” Dream said from somewhere Tommy couldn’t see, “Care to explain why Tommy has fucking  _ wings _ ?” his tone was, though not insulting, sharp and laced with anger.

And so, Wilbur sat down next to Tommy and began to repeat most of the things that Phil had said to Niki and Eret.

Somewhere along the way, they moved to the summerhouse, Tommy having a towel draped pathetically over his shoulders. He felt so strange, like he wasn’t really there. Everything seemed to happen in a sickeningly slow pace, but then at the same time rushed by in a blur of numbed emotions.

“So, who else has wings?” Karl asked, glancing at the three brothers and smiling tiredly. It was probably around half past seven, the only thing keeping Tommy from feeling horribly hungry being the excessive snacks they all bought from town. 

“Well, I for one do.” Wilbur said, “Techno and Ranboo both do, Phil does, obviously Tommy does.” he sounded very, very tired.

They all glanced at Techno and Ranboo, as if expecting them to do something. Techno did, rolling his eyes and yanking his shirt over his head, letting his magnificent wings unfurl from his back. 

Holy shit, this was actually happening, Tommy thought. 

He glanced around for where Ranboo was, finding the boy collapsed next to where Fundy was sitting. Reluctantly, Ranboo lifted the back of his shirt and let his dull magpie wings out into the fresh air. Wilbur furrowed his brow at the sight, nodding to Techno in slightly suspicious manner.

“Uh, I do.” someone muttered. Heads snapped around to identify the voice, Tommy finding it to be Bad, who was sitting next to Skeppy. The boy removed his swimming top and let two leathery bat wings unfurl from under his back. Skeppy looked utterly horrified, and immediately began firing a multitude of questions at the tired looking wingfolk.

“Same, it’s why I’m called Quackity!” In his peripheral vision, he watched two duck wings pop out of the back of Quackity, white on the inside, but the outside having brown primaries with striking blue secondaries. 

With a slight chuckle, Ranboo put on an offended tone and said, “Come on guys, I wanted to be special.”

“If it makes you feel better, I know that no one else here has wings.” George stated, sounding exhausted.

“Hey, can we have the pizza now? I’m fuckin’ starving.” Tommy croaked, his voice screwed by all the coughing, but his point still stood, and everyone still laughed as the tense atmosphere was shattered.

They went inside, trudging up the stairs and deciding on the movie room as the place for the pizza feast. Whilst Dream and George were heating up the pizzas, Sapnap turned on the projector and slapped some Disney movie on.

Wilbur changed into a tank top and let his wings out, cuddling up with him and Techno. It all felt so sickenly domestic, with Karl sat on another couch curiously running his hands through Quackity’s wings and Skeppy snuggled up with Bad in a cozy looking wing hug. Ranboo was helping with the pizza, and Fundy was sitting on a bean bag with a can of something (he hoped it was soda, but who knew).

Ranboo rushed through the door carrying several plates of pizza, “Hey guys!” he smiled nervously, “There’s one Margerita and a chicken and mushroom one, and there’s a meat feast on the way!” He set the two plates down on one of the coffee tables. Just as he was about to slink out the room, Wilbur spoke up.

“Wait, Ranboo.” the boy froze, and Wilbur continued, “I’ll go down instead, you come and sit down.” he peeled himself from between Tommy and Techno, both of them moving their wings so he could.

Ranboo remained hovering in the doorway until Techno beckoned him over, moving aside so the boy could take Wilbur’s spot. Tommy shuffled over reluctantly, tucking his right wing up so Ranboo didn’t sit on it.

“Ranboo. Let your wings out.” Techno ordered, though his voice was kind. The boy wrung his dual tone hands, standing there awkwardly.

“It’s alright big man, your wings are fuckin’ cool.” he hoped that the boy would finally let himself chill out a little bit.

Techno got up, placing a hand on Ranboo’s shoulder, “Let your wings out. You’re safe here. We’re all friends.” he pulled the boy closer, “I know how fuckin’ terrifyin’ it is, don’t think I wasn’t vergin’ on panickin’ when I let my wings out.” he sounded like he was one push from crying, and it sounded strange coming from the usually stoic teen. 

From the holes in Ranboo’s shirt, two black and white wings gingerly bloomed, casting a graceful shadow on the projector screen.

The two sat down and Techno took the middle seat, wrapping both of them in his massive wings. Tommy huffed and tried to grab a few slices of pizza, ultimately giving up and asking Karl to grab a slice of chicken and mushroom for him. Karl also offered Techno and Ranboo some, and both of them eagerly took a slice of Margherita.

Wilbur returned with some more pizzas, smiling fondly at the three of them, “Aw, so nice to see Techno realise he has emotions.” he beamed, springing out of the door with a big fat grin. Tommy called him a bitch, then got swatted by Techno.

“Ranboo, why don’t you like your wings?” Techno asked simply, glancing the boy who had his knees drawn up to his chest and his wings wrapped around him like a feathery cocoon. 

Ranboo swallowed a mouthful of pizza, then said, “I don’t really know.” his voice was quiet, void of meaningful emotion.

“Ranboo, if anyone has ever told you that your wings make you some kind of monster, if someone has told you that your wings make you less of a person than them, if someone has told you that your wings make you any less deservin’ of love, happiness and acceptance, then they are so very wrong.” Techno spoke with such stifling sincerity that the rest of the room listened to his heartfelt speech, “Ranboo, you are one of the most deservin’ of love, one of the kindest and utterly wonderful people I’ve ever met.”

Ranboo answered with a kind of choked sob, and he leant into Techno’s side, sobbing and still eating the slice of pizza. 

Wilbur, Dream and George appeared at the doorway, each with two plates of pizza. They placed them down on the tables, then Dream and George sat down on the other side of the couch Skeppy and Bad were on and Wilbur sat on Tommy’s left side, leaning into him. Tommy called him a bitch, but softly, and Wilbur called him a gremlin child. 

The pizza was eaten quickly, and once it was all gone Techno demanded they do a huge group preening session.

“It’s for bondin’.” Techno explained to Quackity, “And wing upkeep.” The boy had only just recently gotten his wings, so he hadn’t had his preened yet. 

So they all sat in a similar way as the night at Phil’s, with Wilbur sat at the back, then Tommy, then Techno, then Ranboo. Karl had offered to try and copy the others and preen Quackity, so he sat behind the duck hybrid. 

Tommy didn’t know why Techno trusted him with his magnificent wings, but apparently he did, so once Techno gave him the go ahead, he tried his best to mirror the time his wings were preened.

In front of him, he heard the soft sighs of Ranboo as he got his wings preened for the first time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Would y'all like a Ranboo POV bit next chapter of him getting his wings preened? Drop a comment if ya do!  
> Also I'm sorry :( I was feeling angsty  
> Would that make it up for the sadness?  
> <33


	7. Ranboo's First Preening

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Slightly shorter chapter in which Ranboo gets his wings preened by Techno, and we see a little bit of Ranboo's backstory and life out of school. Includes Ranboo comforting Techno after a nightmare.  
> (ft. kleptomaniac Ranboo bc I said so)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hullo! Sorry about the lateness of this chapter, school has literally murdered me. (I'm in a google meet for chemistry as I'm typing this lol)  
> It has got a little bit of Ranboo backstory and plenty of comfort and Technosoft. Also has kleptomaniac Ranboo in there, thanks to user (lizurich).  
> This is all completely platonic, I see Ranboo and Techno's relationship in this a bit like brothers, don't be like that thank you.  
> Anyways! Enough of my stupid rambling! I have chemistry work to do! And y'all have a chapter to read!
> 
> CW: Mild Implied Child Neglect/Abuse, Implied/Referenced Panic Attacks

He was afraid of water.

He had no idea where that came from, he most likely forgot about it, which was a bit annoying, but with the blind panic that filled him every time it rained he guessed the reason was much better forgotten. His memory often did that, but with the bad things it also lost precious memories that he  _ knew  _ he should remember. One thing that he can barely remember was his wings growing in. The only thing that kept the memory somewhat fresh in his mind was his journal, in which he had written about every worthwhile memory and vented his emotions. The entry went as follows:

  
_ Today I passed out on the living room floor because of my back pain. It was very painful, and I thought I was going to die.  _

_ When I woke up, Uncle was there. I had wings, and he had taken me up to my bedroom. He was very kind and explained what happened.  _

_ His girlfriend was not kind about it. I don’t really remember what happened, but she’s not here anymore. _

_ I hate these wings. Uncle hates me for them, I can see it in his eyes. He was happy with that woman, but I made her angry so now Uncle is sad. Uncle told me to hide the wings away. It is painful to do so, but he is very kind to me and I want to be able to pay him back somehow, so I won’t let my wings out unless I am alone. _

Ranboo re-read his journal sometimes. It had become a strange comfort, reading the coldly worded entries, some of them he knew almost by heart. On those days, he would not sleep. Memories would swirl a few inches beneath his consciousness, and if he was unlucky one of them would cross through momentarily and send him into a fit of screaming and sobbing over a thing he didn’t even remember.

When he found out that his friend Techno, Tommy and also Tubbo had wings, it was like fresh air after drowning for an entire year. He wasn’t alone, this stoic, strong boy, his confident brother and this ever optimistic and energetic boy were just like him.

On that night, Techno had texted him.

_ (private conversation between theblade and memoryboi) _

**_theblade_ ** _ : hey ranbo _

**_memoryboi:_ ** _ yeh? _

**_theblade_ ** _ : has anyone ever preened those wings _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : not anyone else _

**_theblade_ ** _ : you done it yourself? _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : i try im pretty trash tho _

**_theblade_ ** _ : someone should preen them for you _

**_theblade:_ ** _ me or tommy or even tubbo would _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : its really fine _

**_theblade:_ ** _ Ranboo. _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : you cant scare me _

**_theblade_ ** _ : =) _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : please dont kill me my parents would be mad _

**_theblade:_ ** _ lol ok then _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : so is tubbo okay? _

**_theblade_ ** _ : master of dodgin questions back at it again _

**_memoryboi:_ ** _ -_- _

**_theblade_ ** _ : kay fine _

**_theblade:_ ** _ hes doin okay from what i can tell _

**_theblade_ ** _ : him and tommy are upstairs in his room just chillin _

Ranboo was, indeed, the master of dodging questions. And also straight up lying. Yeah, he did that too.

The idea of having someone preen his wings was both wonderful and terrifying at the same time, even more so if it were to be Technoblade. The man seemed to have taken a liking to him ever since Ranboo transferred, even if it was rather gradual. He can remember his first day, he wrote it down in his journal. The entry read like so: 

_ Today was my first day at the new school. I am on one of the last stops for the bus, and it picks me up at around twenty minutes past eight.  _

_ I would have sat alone, but the bus was pretty full and I ended up sitting next to this terrifying looking guy with pink hair. His name is Technoblade, and we talked about Minecraft for the entire journey. He introduced me to his friends. They seem alright. _

_ Techno is a pretty nice guy, I’ve learnt. He added me to a group chat. Me and Techno talked a lot about Minecraft, he has a proper gaming PC. I hope I can use it some time. _

From then on, Techno seemed to protect him like a brother. Which was rather strange, but he wasn’t about to complain. The group seemed to find it really quite funny, so Ranboo just assumed that Techno was doing it as a joke, and thought of him as just an acquaintance more than anything else. 

The party at Dream’s house was a weird one. Ranboo was immediately set on edge by how extensive the actual place was, and the amount of pretty trinkets that lined the shelves and glass display cabinets. Being a magpie mix, he had a strange instinctual urge to  _ steal.  _ Of course, he never did, but it was rather hard to conceal with his itching fingers and distracted mind. Part of his mind would try to convince him, no one would notice one of those little glass animals going missing, would they? But no, he told himself. It was impossible to not be noticed, he was about as subtle as a brick, and he wanted to maintain at least a shadow of a moral backbone.

That night, Techno called Ranboo his ‘favorite friend’, and it hit his heart somewhere strange and sensitive. Did Techno actually consider him a friend? Though most of his logical thoughts said  _ yes, of course you dummy,  _ there was a voice that convinced him that Techno was lying.

Now the man was offering to preen his wings. Techno was sitting behind him, having his wings preened by Tommy, and was asking him whether or not Ranboo wanted to have his wings preened.

“I’m not goin’ to do anythin’ you don’t want me to, but I say it’s for the best.” Techno stated, his voice still slightly shaky from his heartfelt speech, “You probably don’t trust me, I know I didn’t trust Phil for a very long time.”

Ranboo shifted, relaxing the muscles in his back and wings, “Don’t worry, I’m okay. I… I trust you.” he murmured, still worried about this whole preening thing. Would it hurt? Would it trigger some buried memory and send him into a panic attack? 

“Okay…” Techno replied, and a deep sigh came from behind him, “Ranboo, are you fine with me touching and preening your wings?”

Taken aback by the formally worded question, he stammered a confirmation and braced himself for whatever this might be.

A warm palm gently pressed in the middle of his upper back, and he unsuccessfully suppressed a flinch. The hand was ripped away, leaving him missing the contact slightly.

“Ranboo, you just flinched away from me.” Techno stated, his concerned tone being almost indistinguishable from his usual monotone, “Do you want me to carry on?”

“Yes! I mean- Yes, please.” he corrected himself by habit. Even though he couldn’t see Techno’s face, he knew the man was doing his one eyebrow raised deadpan face. 

“Okay then.”

The hand returned, this time he was ready for it, and didn’t flinch. It was met with another, the contact sending little tremors down his shoulders and spine. They spread out, following the direction of his bright white tertiaries, gently brushing through the feathers without actually touching anything directly. The hands ghosted over his black secondaries, then returned to the middle of his back.

Ranboo found himself relaxing. It was almost like Techno was petting him in a way, though it was in no way patronising, instead raising a warm, connected feeling that he tried to focus on as much as he could. It told him that Techno was trustworthy, that Techno was his best friend and the brother he never had, fighting away the anxiety that clawed at every single one of his thoughts. 

Just as Ranboo was coming close to falling asleep, the hands changed from brushing over his feathers to actually raking through them. His sensitive wings tingled with the touch, and he realised how utterly touch starved he was. Leaning into the touch, he let out a content sigh and tried to ignore everything other than the warm, familial feeling in his chest and the therapeutic brushing of his feathers. It was so warm, and he felt so safe. Relishing the safety, Ranboo closed his eyes and smiled fondly as Techno continued to card his fingers through his wings.

Then, the actual preening part seemed to begin. Techno would find a feather, then spend a good minute or so straightening the fibres on the feather with a kind of intense patience that Ranboo was mildly jealous of. After that, he would move onto another one, slowly going over his entire right wing. There were also a concerning amount of moulted feathers slipping out, some of them bent at wild angles, others tattered and spindly. Either way, his wings were not well cared for.

Magpies were meant to be one of the brassiest, glossiest birds, though Ranboo’s wings had long since lost their sheen of blueish iridescence. Maybe it was because of stress, or just simply the lack of care that his wings got, or maybe a lethal combination of both, whichever way, it didn’t seem to be too big of a problem. No one was looking at the damn things until now.

“Right! Techno, I am finished, I think!” came the boisterous voice of Tommy, probably finished with preening the wings of the man behind him, “I was amazing at that! You will not threaten me for at least an hour!”

“No promises.” Techno replied ominously, still focussed on straightening out a slightly bent up feather, “Hey Ranboo?” he asked in his usual monotone drawl.

“Uh, yeah?” he cleared his throat, feeling slightly out of it, the physical touch overwhelming him a bit. 

Techno moved on to another feather, carefully smoothing it out, “How long do you keep your wings in? Some of your feathers are really messed up, I can’t imagine how sore your back is.”

His breath hitched, “For about- I dunno- ten hours. Each day.” Ranboo knew that he should take breaks, but he didn’t really have the time. Plus, the idea of leaving his room without tucking his wings in was enough to send him spiralling into a panic attack. Right now was different, he felt safe here with his friends, and with Techno’s hands gently sorting out his feathers.

“Ranboo. You’re gonna screw up your wings doin’ that.” Techno stated, his voice going back to that concerned tone. Even though he was still gently preening Ranboo’s wings, it wasn’t as focussed as before, “Can you not let your wings out at home?” he pried tentatively, obviously trying to skirt around the issue of family life whilst still finding out whether or not Ranboo lets his wings out at home.

“Uh, sometimes. When I’m alone.” he replied quietly, suddenly much more aware of the many people who were also in the room. Techno simply hummed, and went back to gently running his deft fingers over one of Ranboo’s feathers. 

Wilbur and Tommy seemed to have fallen asleep on each other, the latter curling his wings protectively around Wilbur. It made Ranboo so happy to see the boy who he made friends with on his first day change so much over just a month or so. Before, he had been closed off and angry, now he was just angry and reluctantly cuddled with his pseudo brothers. He wondered whether Techno or Wilbur were like that, how different they were when they were first adopted by Phil. 

A sharp, new sensation ripped him from his thoughts. There was an intense, almost painful, but also relieving of pain at the same time, feeling that burned in his back. Through the haze, his mind identified it as Techno’s hands applying mindful pressure to the muscles in his back - a massage.

“You good?” the low rumble of Techno’s voice barely registered in his tired, overwhelmed mind. Missing the intense sensation, Ranboo nodded, feeling as if he would make some inhuman sound if he even attempted speech.

In his sleep deprived mind, all he could envision was the hands that pressed down on his sore, cramped muscles with no ill intent whatsoever, like a fire burning through him, clearing him of all the dead and unwanted things, leaving room for new things to grow. It raged through his exhausted body, keeping him warmer than he’d ever felt, reminding him that he was not alone in this place. The deadwood in his forest was being burnt away, leaving space for development and fresh, green plants. And the fire did not burn, no, it was simply warm. The flames held him up, the feeling of his aches being relieved by kind hands kept him safe, and for the only time he could really remember, Ranboo felt at peace.

* * *

Gods, he felt so calm right now. Where was he? It didn’t matter, there were strong arms holding him tightly, so he knew he was safe. 

“So which one did he say we were supposed to go to?” he heard a deep, monotone voice - that was Techno. Techno was holding him, “This room?” Ranboo could feel the vibrations coming from Techno’s chest, and he didn’t even try to stop himself as he snuggled a little closer into the man. 

A few other voices were speaking, though in his sleepy haze he couldn’t make out any words. Yet to open his eyes, he didn’t notice as he was plonked onto something soft and slightly cool. Techno tried to let go, but Ranboo kind of just clung on, his mind delirious and unable to work out that that was probably one the most embarrassing things he could do right now. 

There was some laughing, but Techno seemed to just give in and lay down with him, saying quietly, “Ranbo. Are you awake?”

He tried to nod, but it was rather difficult to do so when lying down, so he just hummed a confirmation. There were wings then draped over him, and hands running absentmindedly through his own, as he drifted off into an actual state of sleep. 

* * *

There was very heavy, fast breathing coming from beside him. He could feel the press and fall of the chest for each breath, and the occasional choked sob. Wearily, he opened one eye and was met with Techno, tightly caught up in a blanket and writhing around like a caterpillar. Snapping to awareness, he sat up and glanced around the room. There were a few other figures, though none of them seemed to be awake, leaving him to deal with the panicking Technoblade. 

Warily, he peeled the caught up blanket from Techno’s form, leaving him to just lay there and twitch slightly. Debating on whether or not it would be safe to wake up the man, he didn’t have time to even consider his options as Techno shot up to seated, sat ramrod straight and blinked in the darkness.

“Hey, Techno. Um, I’m here.” he whispered, holding out a hand to the man, “It’s me, Ranboo. We’re in Dream’s house.”

Techno seemed to stare right through him, his red rimmed eyes dilated in the dim light and hair messed up from sleep. His breathing was laboured and shaky, tears still tracking down his face.

“Oh, god.” Techno said, voice weaker than Ranboo had ever heard, “Oh my god, I’m so sorry.” it was only at this point that Ranboo noticed the missing wings - why had Techno tucked his wings away?

“Hey, it’s okay. We all have nightmares.” he reassured, still slightly shaken up, “Are you good now?”

Techno nodded, taking a deep breath in, and taking one of the hands that Ranboo had offered to him, “I dunno why the hell I had a nightmare tonight. I was in a pretty good mindset.” he mumbled to himself, gripping the hand tightly like it was his only reminder of reality. There were still tears on his cheeks, some dropping onto a blanket, leaving little darkened spots on the soft material.

“Do you wanna… talk?” he asked timidly, the grip on his hand tightening. Techno shook his head, then flopped tiredly down onto the pillow he had been sleeping on.

“Nah. I just wanna sleep.” he replied, voice meeker than Ranboo had ever heard from him. It reminded him that this man was just as human, or wingfolk, technically, as him and everyone else.

Considering whether or not to bother Techno and tell him to let his wings out, Ranboo decided on just wrapping his own around the half asleep boy and calling it a day. Eventually, he felt two massive wings emerge, and smiled as Techno’s breathing shallowed as he fell asleep. 

There was a feeling of peace in the air. It resided underneath the wings of everyone, each holding their friend close to them. Ranboo felt the peace that Techno’s sleeping form exuded, and returned it with a gentle hug and a fond smile as they both fell asleep.

* * *

**_no escape_ **

**_sandy_ ** _ : lol look at these two _

**_sandy_ ** _ : <Photo of Techno and Ranboo curled up together on the floor of the sleepover room. They both have their own wings wrapped around each other, and they wear serene expressions.> _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : blackmail potential? _

**_sandy_ ** _ : for once i agree with you _

**_habibi_ ** _ : this only slightly brings down technos intimidation factor _

**_404_ ** _ : you do know that both of them are on this gc? _

**_sandy_ ** _ : shit oh yeah _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : operation delete :) _

**_sandy_ ** _ : get your screenshots quick _

_ ( _ **_sandy_ ** _ has deleted 5 messages) _

_ ( _ **_nightmare_ ** _ has deleted 2 messages) _

_ ( _ **_habibi_ ** _ has deleted 1 message) _

_ ( _ **_404_ ** _ has deleted 1 message) _

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : WHAT THE FUCK IS UP DICKHEADS _

**_sandy_ ** _ : bye _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope that was okay!  
> Updates might a little slower, and I'm sorry about that. I go to keyworker school four days a week so yeah. It's really pretty mad there, literally I've been offered weed several times and had plentiful breakdowns and panic attacks in toilets. Also shouted at someone yesterday for being a twat. Honestly British schools are so fukcing stupid. This is a little bit of a vent fic in some respects, but aren't all fics vent fics? We just be tryin' to process our emotions the only way we know how.  
> I might write a oneshot of (completely unrelated to this fic) trans Techno, so if y'all check my profile I might do that sometime (:  
> Bye bye <3


	8. Dream's Tragic Party (Pt 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath of the sleepover party, with a dose of 3am UNO antics.  
> (ft. Dream POV)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I've been really busy, so this chapter is really short in comparison as well, sorry! There's also a POV switch in the middle of this, but I'm pretty sure that's obvious, though just a little heads up! It's Dream's POV, and is there to explore a few of his emotions on the sudden revelation of wingfolk.  
> Since I'm starting to run low on inspiration, I want to hear you guys' headcanons down in the comments! Go on down there and type up any requests you have based in this universe, I'm up for little family bonding moments or friendship stuff.   
> If you want to request something, then just have a read of the end notes for this chapter for some guidelines/rules.  
> Love ya, and enjoy the chapter!  
> <333

Tommy had finished preening Technoblade around the same time Wilbur had finished preening him, so the two were left with nothing to do whilst Ranboo got his wings preened. It was fascinating to watch, the look of pure patience on Techno’s face and the content that settled on Ranboo’s. When Wilbur told him to stop being creepy and just watch whatever shitty movie they had put on the projector, he called the lanky boy a stupid bitch, then got a glare from Bad, who had a sleeping Skeppy curled up in his lap. It was rather difficult to take someone seriously like that, Tommy had told Wilbur.

After a while, Techno switched to massaging Ranboo’s back and wings. It reminded Tommy of the first time he’d been preened by Phil, who also massaged him afterwards. Ranboo fell asleep basically in Techno’s lap, and the man just kind of looked awkward and terrified. 

“Should we head into the sleepover room place?” Wilbur asked, spread out over an entire couch with Fundy’s lap acting as a kind of legrest. It was past midnight, and they were the only ones still in the movie room. Dream had dragged George, Sapnap, Karl and Quackity to the sleepover room already, to play some truth or dare or something like that. Tommy didn’t really care, he much preferred would you rather games, it meant he got to ask uncomfortable questions and not get hated for it. 

“Yeah, I’m dead fuckin’ tired.” Tommy complained, reclining in the beanbag he’d snagged, “This movie is shit anyway.”

From the other couch, Techno grumbled, “The Lorax is a work of art, don’t you dare insult it.”

“Skeppy! Bad! Opinions on The Lorax?” Wilbur called, though he was quiet as to not wake anyone sleeping.

“Um… It’s okay I guess? I mean, the little bear guys are kinda cute…” Bad murmured sleepily, combing his fingers through Skeppy’s hair. 

“Whatever, can we leave now?” Tommy demanded, standing up from the sofa, ansty to leave the stuffy room. He wanted to sleep mostly, but the movie room had given him slightly bad vibes for some reason, possibly the lack of any windows. The sleepover room was the same, but it didn’t really feel as bad.

He followed Wilbur out, who walked with Fundy. Bad carried Skeppy with a soft grunt of exertion, and Techno hoisted the lanky Ranboo into his arms and carried him bridal style to the sleepover room.

After a while of walking down dimly lit corridors, Techno stopped, “So which one did he say we were supposed to go to?” he came to a door, one that Tommy had probably seen before, “This room?” 

Fundy gently cracked the door open, peeping into the room, “Yeah, I can hear them.” he swung the door open, “Hey guys.” he said, before promptly collapsing onto the floor, halfheartedly pulling a random blanket over himself. 

“Sorry, George already beat you to first one asleep.” Dream laughed gently, gesturing to the shadow in the corner of the room. 

Quackity slapped an Uno card down on the carpet, where they were presumably playing some card games, “Yeah man, sleeping beauty over there fell asleep by like, half past eleven.”

“Impressive.” Techno stated, before gently setting Ranboo down on one of the mattresses, only for him to cling onto his shirt, wrapping his long arms around him with what seemed to be surprising strength for someone so skinny and not to mention unconscious. Techno let out a soft ‘oh’, before trying again to place the sleeping avian onto the mattress, to no avail. 

Tommy cackled, restraining his laughter like the others as to not wake up the few sleeping people, and Wilbur pulled out his phone to snap a photo of the ridiculous situation.

What he didn’t expect was for Techno to just give in and lay down next to Ranboo, muttering something softly to him and then draping his wings over the both of them.

Deciding to not laugh too much, since he didn’t really feel like facing the wrath of Technoblade in the morning, Tommy sat down next to Wilbur and Quackity to watch the intense Uno battle between Dream and Karl. They were playing some complicated version, with strange, twisted rules, like ‘if you lay a seven you get to swap packs with someone’ or ‘if you lay a zero everyone passes their pack to the person to their right’. 

Dream threw a fit when Karl reigned victorious, threatening to slice someone’s face open with a card, and ending up tackling Sapnap. They landed slightly too close to Techno, who flipped them off then instantly went back to running his hands through Ranboo’s wings. 

By this point, it was nearing three in the morning, and Tommy was exhausted and craving something sweet. Thankfully, Sapnap and Karl must’ve felt the same way, since the two went to their rucksacks and pulled out a bunch of sweets from their trip into town.

“We got Squashies, Maoam, Maltesers and a kilogram of gummy worms, because Sapnap.” Karl explained, pulling the sweets from his bag and spreading them over the sleepover room. Tommy managed to snag himself a hefty helping of Squashies and of course a ridiculous quantity of gummy worms. The Maltesers ended up being tossed across the room in an attempt to get them in Quackity’s mouth, most of them ending up on the floor funny enough. Wilbur then grabbed about ten of them, throwing them up in air and catching each of them in his mouth, though when he got the last one, it went wrong and he started choking. Taking that as an excuse to beat him, Tommy started slapping the everloving shit out of Wilbur, all the while telling him to ‘stop choking, dickhead’. 

It was a wonder that Techno didn’t wake up and body slam him, but he didn’t want to test his luck, so he only beat Wilbur for a little while.

Eventually, the madness died down, and by nearly four in the morning, they were all laying down and playing ‘would you rather’. 

“Would you rather…” Quackity giggled, “Would you rather punch Techno or kiss him?” he started laughing uncontrollably.

“Well he’s kind of my brother, so obviously the first one.” Wilbur stated boredly, “That’s a really weird question by the way, big Q.”

Tommy agreed, scrolling mindlessly through Instagram.

“I’d kiss him.” Dream smirked, “He’d kiss me back as well. I am undeniably attractive.”

Sapnap scoffed, “Dream you are a gross person. Although Techno really scares me sometimes, I’d never kiss him.”

“I’m going to sleep.” Karl said tiredly.

There was a chorus of agreements, then the room went silent for the best part of half a minute.

“Dream.” Sapnap whispered.

“Shut the fuck up.” 

“What?”

“I need to pee.”

“Please be quiet.”

“Go to sleep.”

“I really need to pee.”

“I will beat you to death with my bare hands.”

Tommy buried his head in his pillow, trying to tune out the meaningless whispers. 

* * *

Dream had woken up early. It was about eight in the morning, meaning he got four hours of sleep at best, though it was probably closer to three.

Pouring the hot water into his mug, he watched apathetically as the instant coffee dissolved into the water. Adding a splash of milk and then wiping down the worktop, Dream returned upstairs, away from the sterile, minimalistic ground floor. 

If he was going to be honest, he’d much rather have a smaller house and not have to constantly worry about it being spick and span, up to his mother’s standards. 

His father was the one who loved the house, and was the one who convinced his mother into letting Dream and his sisters run wild upstairs. But he was currently in Saudi Arabia, running the airport he owned. Dream had visited about five times, it might have been six, nonetheless, he hardly ever saw his father.

His mother wasn’t away too long, but she had been going on trips more often as of late, leaving him home alone with his two sisters. She was currently away from home for about two weeks, though she swore she would be home for the majority of the summer holidays and when Dream’s father came to visit. 

Sighing, Dream prepared a smile in case anyone else was awake. When he pushed the door open, he was met with the same view as before. He let his shoulders sink back down, then returned to his seat next to Sapnap and sipped his coffee.

“Hi.” a gravelly voice said, causing Dream to flinch. It was Techno, he was awake, though he didn’t move from where he was curled up with Ranboo.

“Morning Techno.” he greeted, cringing at how dead he sounded, “You sleep vaguely okay?”

“No.” Techno responded, eliciting a small chuckle from Dream.

“You’re having a nice cuddle there.” Dream teased, leaning into Sapnap a little.

Techno simply glared at him, “I did not choose to be here.”

“You chose to stay.” Dream shot back, smirking.

“You saw how the boy clung onto me!” Techno retaliated, voice going slightly higher.

Nodding, Dream simply sipped his coffee and snuggled up to Sapnap. His mind was whirring, Techno had wrapped Ranboo in his  _ wings.  _ Last night, he found out that half of his friends had  _ wings.  _ While he had seen some of friends roll with the whole wings thing, it freaked Dream out. Not that he would ever admit it, but it disturbed him. 

People don’t have wings. Human beings don’t have wings. 

He took one last, long sip from his coffee, trying to get the intrusive thoughts to leave his head. Truly, he wanted to love the wingfolk, to accept them and to not be so weird about it. It wasn’t a choice made by these people, it didn’t change them at all, it just meant they had… wings.

Running his hands through his hair, he relished the grounding feeling of his nails burning in his scalp.

“Uh… you good there?” Techno asked, still carding his fingers through Ranboo’s wings. 

“Yes, I’m fine.” he lied, doing his best to block out all the stupid thoughts and emotions that bubbled up upon seeing Techno’s wings curl around Ranboo.

Cocking his head, Techno said, “Dream, are you angry?” 

“What?” Why would he be angry? 

“Are you confused by the fact that half of your friends are a different race of humans, and have been since you knew some of them?” The pink haired man stated simply, monotone as ever.

Sighing, Dream replied, “I don’t know. I want to accept you guys, but…” he struggled for kind words, “I dunno. My brain, or something, hates you.”

Techno nodded, not looking offended in the slightest, “Trust me, we have all felt that way some time before.” he glanced around the room, “Ask any wingfolk, you’d be very lucky to find someone who hasn’t thought to cut their wings from their back.” his expression went solemn, and he stared fondly at Ranboo, “I’m hopin’ that since we fostered Tommy in time, he feels at peace with himself. I think he’d be the only one out of us.” For a moment, Dream saw a brief anger cross Techno’s usually guarded expression, though it was banished the moment it appeared. 

Great, now he felt like a shitty person for making Techno upset. Allowing himself to pick over what the man had said, Dream eventually decided that these wingfolk deserved much better than the anger that he had shown them yesterday, especially those such as Techno and Ranboo who clearly had conflicted feelings related to their wings and identities as humans, wingfolk and people in general.

Dream wanted to help his friends, but something in his brain told him that this was all so wrong. That he should tell someone, he should call up the authorities-

“Dream?” Techno’s rumbling voice cut him from his thoughts. The man was sitting up now, with Ranboo sprawled out over his lap and his wings pulled in tightly, “Are you really okay?”

He nodded, humming a confirmation. He didn’t trust his voice not to betray him right now, so he kept silent in that regard.

There was a rustle, and a bat wing flung into the air from a corner of the room. With a groan, Bad sat up, rubbing groggily at his eyes.

“Morning…” he rasped, “...Techno, Dream.” stifling a yawn, Bad adjusted himself so he was sat up against the wall. 

“Hey Bad.” Techno greeted, all emotion veiled in his flat voice, “Dream ‘n’ I have been talking about what he thinks about half his friend group being wingfolk.” 

Bad let out a soft sound of surprise, and Dream sighed. He didn’t want to do this anymore, he just wanted this stupid dream to be over and for him to wake up and think ‘huh, that was weird’ and to not have to deal with  _ wings  _ ever again. 

“Yeah, he’s just havin’ the usual intrusive thoughts.” Techno stated casually, “Nothin’ a little chat can’t solve.”

Bad nodded, absentmindedly picking through Skeppy’s hair, “So Dream, what are these thoughts saying? It’s okay if you’re not comfortable with saying straight away, we both understand that your entire world view has been shifted.” he said gently, meeting Dream’s eyes with his kind own, though he couldn’t stop staring at the leathery  _ wings  _ behind him.

“Now you say that,” Techno considered, “We should’ve probably talked a little more about it.”

Probably? Dream felt his emotions rage beneath the surface, as strong and ugly as they’ve always been, “Probably? You just revealed a life changing fact and expected us to just fucking roll with it!” Dream didn’t shout, but his voice did raise, and Techno flinched at the sudden change in atmosphere. 

“Language!” Bad whispered, “And shush! Everyone is sleeping.”

Techno, back to stoic and calm, replied with, “Yeah, that was a bit silly. Is there anything you want to talk about?”

Dream, his anger unreturned and fizzled out in an embarrassing moment, nodded his head, “Uh, yeah.” struggling for words, he hesitated, the two waiting patiently, “What is it like when they, well, when they grow out?” he imagined finding feathers on his back, then little nubs of feather-covered flesh would poke out the next morning, and before he knew it there would be wings on his back.

“It starts with an itchy rash.” Techno stated, sounding even more devoid of emotion, “Then you get horrible, constant pain in your back, for around two to six weeks, depending on wing size and type.” from behind Techno, Bad nodded.

“Mine took two and a half weeks to grow in.” he interjected.

Techno continued his explanation, running his hands through Ranboo’s hair this time with an air of nervousness, “For me, I was in pain for over five weeks. The wings you see here were growing under my skin.” a tremor ripped through Dream’s body at the picture of having those  _ massive  _ wings under his skin, “They then rip out. It usually takes about half an hour for them to fully leave, but sometimes it can be complicated.” he sighed, and grimaced slightly, “When that happens, it hurts a lot.”

Something told Dream that the man was speaking from personal experience, and if so, then Techno just earned a good chunk of his respect.

“Yeah, that’s about right.” Bad added, “They usually grow in around ages fourteen to sixteen, but there can obviously be exceptions.”

Techno nodded, gaze fixated on the young man sleeping in his lap, his expression flickering with complexities.

“How have they…” Dream tried to find a way to put his thoughts into words without sounding like an inconsiderate dick, “How have the authorities not found out?”

The room went silent. Oh, he had hit a sore spot, hadn’t he?

“They have.” Techno finally answered, sounding detached and strangely vulnerable. The implications answered any question Dream could think of, they weren’t very nice, so he restrained from voicing any of them. 

Techno had pulled Ranboo a little closer to him, wrapping his wings around the both of them. It looked like he was protecting the young boy.

* * *

Waking up had been a haze. Tommy could remember Skeppy and Bad saying they needed to leave early, and vaguely recalled Wilbur gently stroking through his wings, but other than that Tommy didn’t have any idea what to expect when he fully entered the conscious plane.

“Tommy!” Ranboo greeted him as soon as he sat up. The teen rushed over to him and gave him a shove, “We joked you were dead. It’s like, noon.”

Sure enough, the time read ‘13:04’ on his phone, meaning he had slept for a good nine hours, albeit broken up and unrefreshing. Upon survey of the sleepover room, Tommy could make out Ranboo, Techno and Karl, the latter being still asleep. 

“Mornin’” came the deep monotone of Techno, who was laying down on the floor, with his phone in one hand. He sat up with a soft groan, then moved to stand up, “Afternoon, even. I’m leavin’ this place now you’re awake.”

Ranboo followed, then Tommy decided to try and stand up, immediately hit with a wave of dizziness. His vision blurred slightly, and he cursed his low blood pressure, pressing a palm to the wall. It passed as suddenly as it came, and he left the sleeping Karl alone in the sleepover room. Techno had his pink tinged wings folded tightly against his back, whereas Ranboo had his pulled up like his shoulders. Tommy let his wings hang slightly, though he kept them pulled in as to not brush any of the framed pictures or display cases. 

Sprawled out on one of the couches in the movie room was Wilbur, scrolling on his phone with a smirk. 

“We’re goin’ now.” Techno announced, standing at the entrance behind Tommy, “The bus goes at half past, so if you gather your crap then we can leave soon.”

Wilbur begrudgingly pulled himself from the couch and trundled over to his rucksack, where he stuffed it with his sweater that hung from one of the couches and packed a phone charger in it as well. Slinging it over his shoulders, from which no butterfly wings were protruding, Wilbur joined the three teens waiting at the door. 

All three of them tucked their wings beneath their skin, Tommy taking the longest since he was the least experienced, then applied some kind of clothing item over the slitted t-shirts they wore, be it an unbuttoned Hawiian shirt or simply a sleeveless hoodie, they all found ways to cover up the abnormal tears and cuts in the back of their t-shirts.

Tommy thought his solution was ingenious - he simply didn’t take off his rucksack. Sure, he would have to sit like that on the bus, but it was all worth it when he didn’t have to wear another layer in the humid English summer. There was a heatwave forecast, predicted to last for pretty much the whole damn summer holidays, reaching stupid temperatures like 35 degrees celcius (95 degrees in Farenheit), meaning the wingfolk would probably have to wear tank tops that covered scars but would stretch to accommodate wings.

They got on the bus, him and Ranboo sitting together and Techno sitting with Wilbur. 

“So whereabouts are you, big man?” Tommy asked, once the bus had pulled away from the remote stop and had begun rumbling down the narrow country lane.

“Me?” Ranboo tilted his head in confusion.

Sighing, Tommy gestured in frustration as he answered, “Of course you, dumbass. I live with the other two, who else would I be-” he cut himself off, exaggerating his anger, “You’re a bit of an idiot, y’know?” he stated, much to the amusement of Ranboo, who doubled over in silent laughter. 

“Understatement of the century!” Ranboo wheezed through all his breathless giggles.

They both calmed down, then Tommy prompted the boy to answer his question. 

“Um… I live on the outskirts of town, in one of the residential areas.” Ranboo answered reluctantly, obviously not too comfortable.

Tommy hummed in acknowledgment, then pushed on for more detail, “Which one? Is it that one with all the weird ass hedges around it?” he asked, hoping to calm down the nervous boy a little.

“Um. No, but it’s close, I think.” Ranboo stammered, “If we’re thinking of the same estate.” he glanced over to Tommy, making an effort to not lock eyes, “It- It’s called Woodside View.” 

“Oh, yeah, I know what you’re talking about.” Tommy broke into a grin, “It’s called ‘Woodside View’ but there’s no woods in view, anywhere.”

Ranboo simply nodded, curling the black and white patterned fabric of his Hawiian shirt around his slender, two-toned fingers.

They reached the town in no time, Techno explaining with odd accuracy what buses each of them had to get on, meaning either he knew the timetable off by heart or had done specific research into what buses they needed to take. Well, it made sense for him to know which bus the brothers needed to take, but Ranboo? 

Weirdness aside, they got on separate buses, waving goodbye to Ranboo, and rode the rest of the journey in relative silence. They were tired, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope that was okay!  
> (if any of y'all are confused, this isn't really a story, more of a collection of connected oneshots that fit into a timeline of events)
> 
> ~Requests~  
> \- I will refuse any requests I don't feel comfortable writing, or if I don't think they fit in this universe  
> \- I won't write any shipping stuff, though I'm cool with bros hugging the homies.  
> \- Should you want to request something, please do so in as much detail as possible so I can pull it off as well as I can, though if you just want to put a vague headcanon, that's fine as well!  
> \- I am happy to do bird instinct related stuff, I really want to implement that kind of stuff but just haven't gotten round to it.  
> \- Other than that, I am mostly fine with any request, headcanons or just general suggestions!


	9. Summer Camping Trip (Pt. 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tommy gets a message from Karl on the groupchat about a camping trip whilst he's sorting out the attic for when Eret, Niki and Tubbo come round to stay for a while whilst they move in.   
> Phil reluctantly agrees, and then some factions start to form, by the names of 'L'Manberg' and 'Dream SMP'.  
> There is then an epic battle and betrayal, all for some marshmallows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was literally so fun to write, but oh my god are the dialogue bits hard. This chapter was brought to you by Architects new album, 'For Those That Wish To Exist', I do not care what you think, it's bloody brilliant. (also the usual music, like Lemon Demon and idkhow)  
> Thank y'all for all the requests and ideas in the comments, for I now, finally, after 40k words, have an ending to this. (or at least a climax, idk how long this'll go on)  
> I also included some DSMP lore in this? Lmk if you don't really want to hear about that, I just thought it would be funny for them to fight over marshmallows like the theatre kids they are.   
> Lastly, if you want to make fanart of this, I will cry, like I will sob, but if you do then please tag me on Instagram! I go by 'theteaandbiscuits'. (please i will love you forever)  
> Enjoy the chapter!

Wiping a bead of sweat from his brow, Tommy took a moment to appreciate how far he’d gotten with cleaning up the attic. It was horribly cramped, and he swore he’d seen some small animal scuttling around the sloped corners, but once all the dusty books had been shoved to the side, there was a decent sized floorspace. 

This was the project for the summer - to make the attic liveable. Phil had offered Eret, Niki and Tubbo a place to stay while they sorted out the house without actually having any rooms for them, so Tommy had suggested they clean up the attic and use that as a temporary sleeping area.

Chest puffed out, he observed the progress he’d made with a sense of achievement and pride. Thanks to the summer weather and all British homes’ lack of air conditioning, it was bloody boiling in the loft. His hands itched from brushing against the insulation once or twice, and his wings were slightly achy from being held close to his body in the cramped space. At least they were out, and not tucked under his skin. 

A head of pink hair popped up through the little hatch that dropped into the hallway, “Hullo.” Techno greeted, not making any move to come into the attic proper, “I’m makin’ some lunch, want some?”

Tommy paused, checking to see if he felt hungry, then he registered the empty feeling that twisted through his gut, “Yeah, I’ll be down in a minute. Just lemme finish up, I’m almost done.” he piled some last boxes up, flattening the cardboard flaps on the top so he could place another on top, “What are you making?”

Techno descended the ladder, rattling on about sandwiches or something. Deciding it wasn’t worth asking him to specify what he meant, Tommy slammed the last of the old school books down on the floor and kicked them against the sloping wall. Huffing in satisfaction, he efficiently climbed down the ladder, jumping down the last two rungs and landing with a dull thud. His wings flared out to soften his fall, doing little to affect the tiny hop. 

He wondered if he’d ever be able to fly. Upon seeing the barn owls glide over the meadows and the starlings murmurate in stunning shapeshifting flocks, he’d get an instinctual urge to jump out of his window and flit across the sky, his wings twitched with a need to be  _ free. _ Maybe Phil would teach him one day, he thought, bounding down the steep stairs.

“What is up!” he shouted out, swinging into the kitchen and darting straight to the fridge, “I am taking some cheese, if you don’t mind me.”

Techno, from the dining table, drawled out, “I do mind.” He bit into an apple and chewed it as he struggled to open a packet of off brand crisps.

“Well fuck you.” Tommy replied, peeling a slice of cheese from the packet and tearing it into a strip that he ate as he grabbed a plate of prepared sandwiches.

Techno had always seemed rather distant to Tommy, and while he quickly bonded with Phil and Wilbur over banter and jokes, the pink haired man intimidated him more than he liked to admit. Maybe it was his stoic expression, or his confident posture, whatever it was, Techno seemed like the kind of person who liked to be left alone. 

Although, Tommy had decided last night whilst on a Discord call with Tubbo that he wanted to talk to the guy more, so that’s what he was going to do now Phil was taking Wilbur around town to look at ‘things’. Their description was ominously vague, but neither of them seemed to be nervous or acting as if they were hiding something, so Tommy just assumed Phil wanted some time alone with Wilbur. He didn’t blame him - Tommy’s presence was one of hugeness and power, and often at times could be overpowering (thanks to how big of a man he was). Sometimes you had to leave the house to talk to someone other than him.

“Hey Techno, what classes did you take for GCSEs?” Tommy enquired when he realised he didn’t even know what subjects the guy enjoyed, “I took computer science, media studies, acting and geography.” he took a large bite of the sandwich, it was decently alright, as good as a ham and cheese sandwich could really be.

“Uhh…” the sound croaked from his throat, right at the bottom of his vocal range, “Triple science, spanish, history and acting as well.”

He raised his eyebrows, “You’re a bit clever.” That seemed about right for what Tommy knew about Techno, terrifyingly clever and also a drama kid at the same time. 

Techno nodded, and finally got the bag of crisps open, shovelling a few into his mouth.

“Hey, what kind of bird are your wings from?” Tommy asked, realising that he’d never been able to identify the broad, pale pink wings that Techno sported, “You’ve never actually told me, I just wondered, you know? Not many pink birds, are there? Don’t tell me you’re a flamingo, that would be so funny though-”

“Roseate Spoonbill.” Techno replied, sounding utterly bored. He had finished the apple off, and was now inspecting tomatoes before popping them into his mouth.

Cocking his head slightly in confusion, Tommy searched his hours of research into birds for a Spoonbill, all that came up was that they were wading birds and pretty big, “So is that just a pink Spoonbill? That’s fuckin’ cool man, I wish I had red wings or something. Green is Tubbo’s colour, not mine.” He tapped his knuckles gently on his chair in rapid motions, a nervous tic that he had recently developed. Maybe it was something to do with him being a woodpecker, but Tommy didn’t honestly care. The reason he was nervous though, was how closed off Techno seemed. He was trying to talk to the man, yet he was acting as if he wanted Tommy to just leave him alone. 

“I think your wings are pretty cool.” Techno muttered to a small tomato, then deemed it good to eat. That was the last one, leaving only the half finished crisps. 

Carefully avoiding the crust of his sandwich, Tommy agreed with Techno, “Yeah, I’m a huge man with huge wings. And they’re very cool wings, very cool.” he didn’t really believe that wholly, there was a part of him that hated the wings and wanted them to just disappear. Although Tommy thought the wings were very cool, that didn’t stop part of him wishing he was just a normal human person. It also didn’t stop the part of him that thought his wings were lame and boring compared to others. Like, everyone else had really cool looking wings, and here he was, stuck with wings as boring as woodpecker wings. At least they were somewhat interesting, with the green tops and barred insides. It wasn’t anywhere near as cool as Phil’s huge raven wings, or Wilbur’s graceful butterfly wings. 

“Tommy.” Techno’s voice cut through his thoughts, “Don’t compare yourself to other people, especially on something as personal and permanent as wings. They are your wings, and they are as cool as you want them to be. But don’t think of them as a reflection of who you are, rather something that adds to who you are based on how you treat them.” 

He didn’t know how Techno knew exactly what needed to be said, but he did somehow, and even though the man was terrible at reassuring people emotionally, he sure gave eloquent speeches that hit the mark. There was a level of empathy that Tommy didn’t even know Techno possessed, he guessed the man was incapable of such things based on his demeanor and the way he froze up at any sign of emotion.

So when Tommy felt himself tearing up, Techno noticed it and visibly stiffened.

“I- Tommy, I-” Techno struggled for words, seeming out of his depth in the emotionally charged atmosphere.

“Shut up, idiot.” Tommy ordered as he got up from his chair and hugged his older brother, “You’re bad at this, just fucken’ hug me or something.”

“We’re both bad at this.” Techno snarked, wrapping his arms, and eventually his wings, around Tommy in the first proper embrace. Techno’s hug, unlike Wilbur’s which was soft and kind, was protective and firm, the man held him tightly in his strong grip. Phil also had that same air of protectiveness, but he was open and fatherly, whereas Techno was silent and guarding. It was strange, but in a way that made Tommy feel warm and content.

“Welcome to the family.” Techno whispered, soft enough that it would be drowned out by any other noise, but firm and reassuring, akin to the man’s presence. By now, Tommy had given up holding back the tears and let them flow down his face. He was choking in the strength of the emotion, the statement meant so much coming from the closed off, guarded and distant Techno. Coming from either Phil or Wilbur, it didn’t quite hold the same weight that it did coming from Techno. The man had obviously seen and been through some things, no one is that distant by choice, it’s a defense mechanism. Tommy felt the pull of that same thing, the urge to isolate himself and to not get attached.

Well...

It was a little late now, wasn’t it?

* * *

The ceiling was rather interesting, but he had been staring at it for about ten minutes, and it was starting to get boring. Phil would be back with Wilbur soon, and he needed to roll out the rugs to finish off the attic space. But Tommy was so utterly exhausted from hauling the ancient hunk of a vacuum cleaner into the attic and bringing it down again that he didn’t want to move. Vacuuming the wooden floor was a suggestion that Techno made, and once presented with a task Tommy would pull it off, and he insisted that he did not need help with moving the vacuum cleaner around because he was a huge, independent man. 

Slowly, he got up from the floor and let the dizziness dissipate for a short moment. The rug was all curled up from being rolled up for so long, so he put it upside down to let it flatten out a bit, then called it quits. As he was shoving the ladder into the loft, he heard his phone buzz, so once he had finished closing up the hatch he swiped his phone from the window sill and checked it.

  
  


**_no escape_ **

**_karlos_ ** _ : hey do u guys wanna do some camping sometime?? _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : hell yeah _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : yeh maybe but can’t do it late august _

**_habibi_ ** _ : im free p much all holiday pahah _

**_BIGMAN_ ** _ : I WILL COME AND ALSO FORCE WILBUR AND TECHNO TO COME _

**_karlos_ ** _ : ah _

**_habibi_ ** _ : the child _

_ ( _ **_karlos_ ** _ has changed  _ **_BIGMAN_ ** _ ’s name to _ **_thechild_ ** _ ) _

**_thechild_ ** _ : FUCK YOU FUKC YOU CFUCK OYOU  _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : i think tommy can come _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : as long as he’s not too bad _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : i might??? idk tho _

**_thechild_ ** _ : RANBOO THEY ARE BEING DICK S TO ME _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : cool cool  _ **_@404_ ** _ you up for it _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : hey tommy consider this _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : what if you were being mean to them _

**_thechild:_ ** _ I AM NEVER MEAN TO ANYONE I AM A CHILVALROUS AND GENTLAEMANLY HUG EMAN _

**_karlos_ ** _ : so basically my family has this field that we can camp oon _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : sick  _ **_@404_ ** **_@404_ ** _ wake the fuck up _

**_karlos_ ** _ : its next to a river so we can swim n stuff _

**_habibi_ ** _ : i am coming of course _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : dream you have to ping george _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : why? _

**_habibi_ ** _ : oh my god youre such an idiot _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : just. do. it. _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : okay…  _ **_@404 _ ** _ do u wanna go camping _

**_habibi_ ** _ : now we wait :) _

**_404_ ** _ : maybe _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : okey  _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : HAHSHAHAHOLY SHIT IT WORKED _

**_habibi_ ** _ : simp _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : says you  _

**_karlos_ ** _ : hey hey dont attack my husband like that _

**_sappynap:_ ** _ yeh leave q out of this _

**_thechild:_ ** _ what the fuck is happening _

**_memoryboi:_ ** _ like. what. _

**_thechild: @sandy_ ** _ come explain _

**_theblade_ ** _ : He’s busy _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : hey techno!! _

**_theblade_ ** _ : hey Ranbo _

**_habibi_ ** _ : technosoft _

**_theblade_ ** _ : Quackity Alex. _

**_habibi_ ** _ : HOLY SHIT OH GOD IBETER STARTRUNNIGN OH BMY GOD DUDUDUDU IMMA SPEEDRUN GET THE FUCK OHT OF HERE HBYBYEBYE _

**_theblade:_ ** _ lol _

**_thechild_ ** _ : technoo _

**_theblade_ ** _ : no _

**_karlos_ ** _ : hey techno wanna come camping with us? _

**_theblade_ ** _ : maybe _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : if i can go will you? _

**_theblade_ ** _ : yes _

**_thechild_ ** _ : oh my god ffs _

**_thechild_ ** _ : techno shut the attic hatch door thingy _

**_theblade_ ** _ : ur short lol _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : lmao cant relate _

**_habibi_ ** _ : neither _

**_sappynap:_ ** _ un true midget _

**_karlos:_ ** _ so whos going then _

**_sappynap:_ ** _ me _

**_habibi_ ** _ : me _

**_thechild_ ** _ : HUGE MAN IS GOING _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : most likely _

**_404_ ** _ : maybe _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : probably depends tho _

**_theblade_ ** _ : only if ranboo goes _

**_theblade_ ** _ : wilbur will probably go as well _

**_karlos_ ** _ : kay ill show yall where it is sometime _

**_karlos_ ** _ : just bring a tent and some food _

**_karlos_ ** _ : there’s a little building with electricity and running water and toilet _

**_karlos_ ** _ : no shower tho _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : we got a river dw _

**_habibi_ ** _ : fucking gross _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : you flirt with my parents shut up _

**_thechild_ ** _ : right im going _

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : same- _

**_habibi_ ** _ : ahahah im terrifying _

_ theblade: :) _

**_habibi_ ** _ : techno pls im too young to die _

**_theblade_ ** _ : so were the orphans _

**_sandy_ ** _ : im home twat and phil is reading this _

**_theblade_ ** _ : i'm the favorite so i’m invincible _

**_karlos_ ** _ : hi phil hi wilbur _

**_karlos_ ** _ : wanna go camping with us? _

**_sandy_ ** _ : i would but phil is much too old _

**_theblade_ ** _ : it would hurt his old man bones to sleep on the floor _

**_sandy_ ** _ : Fuck off, Technoblade. _

**_theblade_ ** _ : oh god phil i’m sorry _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : philza minecraft _

**_karlos_ ** _ : Philza Minecraft! _

**_thechild_ ** _ : what?? _

**_sandy_ ** _ : he created minecrafahuhgi8#Q3 8hO;’ _

**_habibi_ ** _ : f _

With a long sigh, Tommy turned his phone off and ran down the stairs, hoping to catch Wilbur being beaten up by Phil. Unfortunately, nothing of the sort was happening.

“I told you, I did not create Minecraft!” Phil shouted between laughs. He was shrugging off a hoodie, then letting out his magnificent jet black wings. 

Tommy barged into the kitchen, flaring his wings out slightly and with his chest puffed out, “I cleaned up the attic! When Tubbo and the others come over, they’ll have plenty of room to sleep and shit- I mean stuff.” he charged through the baffled looking guys and made his way to the the cupboard which held all the crisps, and fished a bag of the off brand crisps in ready salted flavour, “Also, why do you guys call him Philza Minecraft?” 

Wilbur and Phil shared a glance, and Techno seemed to turn slightly red. With a devious smirk, Wilbur began to talk, “Well, when Phil first showed Techno Minecraft, he was like twelve, and he assumed that Phil had made the game.” Wilbur was an incredibly captivating storyteller, “Phil’s in-game name is ‘Philza Minecraft’, and upon seeing that, Techno assumed that it was Phil’s full name. So when Phil showed him Minecraft, Techno was all like, ‘Oh, Philza Minecraft, this is a very cool game you’ve created’ and ever since he told me that story, Phil has been known as ‘Philza Minecraft, creator of Minecraft’”

Tommy found himself doubled over in cackles, enjoying the absurdity of the moment, unlike Techno who had gone a shade of pink to match his hair and wings out of embarrassment. 

“That’s just fucken’ stupid, Techno, you are really really dumb.” Tommy said between cackles. 

“So…” Techno croaked, his voice close to breaking from embarrassment, “What about that campin’ trip Karl was talking about on the group chat?”

Phil raised an eyebrow, “Camping trip?” something indecipherable crossed his face, gone as soon as it appeared, “Where and when?” 

“Don’t know, and don’t know.” Techno answered dryly, pulling out his phone. It had a clear case with a picture stuffed inside it, though Tommy couldn’t quite make out who was in the photo. 

He realised something, “Hey, do you think Tubbo could come?” 

“Hold on. We don’t know anything about this camping trip, when it is and whereabouts you’re meant to be staying.” Phil held his hands up in a ‘stop’ motion, “Once we find that out, I’ll consider letting you three go. Until then, it’s a possibility.” 

Tommy huffed, but knew that Phil’s concern was fair. He just hoped that Tubbo could come camping with him, it would be so cool.

* * *

It was the fourth day of the summer holidays, and Tommy was beyond excited. His wings were flickering behind him in anticipation, and his knuckles drummed on the table where he was waiting for Techno.

On the table were three bags: a large, brown hiking backpack; a slightly smaller, rectangular travel bag and Tommy’s brand new red and black rucksack, stuffed full of new clothes and some other stuff he needed for camping. 

“Tuck them in, we’re going in five.” Wilbur suggested, dumping a reusable shopping bag on the table with sandy brown canvas poking out the top. He also slammed a folded up pole on the table, along with a bag full of massive metal pegs.

“Watch my table, Wilbur Soot! You dent it, you’re paying for a new one!” Phil shouted from the living room, his dad senses obviously in good working order. 

Wilbur gave Tommy a sheepish smile, then slung the rectangular bag over his shoulder and lugged it out the door on his back whilst shouting, “Techno, come get your bag, we’re leaving!”

Tommy pulled his wings in, faster this time. He was getting used to pulling them in quickly, and beamed with pride when he managed to get them under his skin in less than ten seconds. It was a complicated manoeuvre, especially when you add clothes into the mix, but the stretchy tank tops Phil had bought for them all seemed to work perfectly. The one he was wearing today was white with a red stripe along the bottom, and slightly darker on the collar and where the sleeves would’ve been. Red and white was his whole thing, like Techno and pink, or Wilbur and that one fucking sweater. 

“Hey Tommy!” the enthusiastic shout of Karl brought him out of his thoughts. The teen was sitting in the passenger seat of a car, with some guy who Tommy didn’t recognise sitting in the driver’s side. 

“Hey Karl! I’m ready to go, but Techno’s taking fucken’ ages to get downstairs.” he explained, swinging into the back of the car with Wilbur. It was an eight seater car, with three seats in the back where the boot would’ve been. That way, Tommy didn’t have to sit in the middle seat, which meant directly next to Wilbur, which meant they would fight.

Karl gestured to the driver, “This guy is Jimmy, one of my friends.” 

Jimmy waved at him, “He only really sticks with me ‘cause I’m rich.” the guy turned to Karl, “Is that right?”

“No, no! I wouldn’t use you for your money, I swear!” Karl retorted with fake hurt, “Why would you ever accuse me of such a thing?”

Jimmy laughed, then Techno appeared with the tent and his bag, flinging them into the back then sitting on the remaining seat. 

The journey was short, and they soon arrived at a rural village, where Karl told them to get out. Jimmy brought them right up to a gate, which once they had gathered all their bags, they went through and trekked over the uneven grass to a small building tucked into the far corner of the field. It was far too hot, and he was very glad that he didn’t have a massive hiking bag on his back like Techno. That would’ve hurt like hell, especially with wings as huge as Techno’s. 

The building had two separate rooms, one with a modest kitchen area and another with a few couches and a shelving unit filled with board games and strange trinkets. 

They weren’t the only ones there either - Bad and Skeppy were arguing while setting up a tent and George was trying to help them, both with the tent and each other.

Tommy decided that what the three needed was a big man to come and intervene.

“Stop pushing the poles through so hard, you’re going to rip the tent!” Bad shouted, holding onto the pole that Skeppy was trying to push through.

“No! It’s fine, I know what I’m doing, just leave it to me!” Skeppy cried back, giving the pole a harsh shove.

George stood awkwardly watching, “Guys, if we push the other two poles through first-”

“Hey guys! Do not fear, for Big man TommyInnit is here to help you do simple tasks like setting up a tent!” he strolled out toward the tent surveying it, then took the pole from the dumbstruck Skeppy and pushed it through, “Bad! You make sure it doesn’t get caught!” he demanded, feeling very, very powerful. This was what he was meant to do - lead people.

It had barely been five minutes since he intervened, and things seemed so much better. Better in a very Tommy sense, since the tent didn’t actually look right, but instead it resembled those blanket forts that kids would make.

George was laughing at the whole thing, Bad and Skeppy had gone back to arguing and Wilbur was joining George with laughing at the horrible situation. An exasperated Techno trudged over, and the rest of them watched as he set up the tent perfectly in about five minutes.

“Hey guys!” Quackity shouted, pulling in on a bicycle, “How are you all doing?” he grinned wide, then fell off his bike and rolled several times on the grass, landing face down with his limbs splayed out like a starfish. 

“Oh my god!” Sapnap ran up from behind him, gasping for breath, “Quackity, you good bro?” 

The teen just raised a shaky thumbs up from the floor, then returned to playing dead. Tommy couldn’t hold in his cackles, and he was soon doubled over in semi painful laughter.

Just as he’d recovered from his laughing fit, Jimmy’s car rolled up to the gate again, and the very last people to arrive did so. From the car, Tubbo, Niki and Eret all climbed out and the former came sprinting towards Tommy.

“Tommy!” he shouted, tackling the taller boy. He was terrifyingly strong for his size, and soon both of them were joining Quackity on the floor.

“Tubbo!” Tommy returned, sitting up and clasping Tubbo in a tight hug. He had managed to convince Karl to let the three siblings come camping with them for a few days, until Sunday. That meant a total of four nights which was basically a massive sleepover, like the one on the last Friday of school. 

They had brought a tent with them, but it was only a miniscule two person pop up tent. Eret said they would probably take the pop up tent, since Tubbo would be staying in the same tent as Tommy and Niki insisted that Eret should have a tent of their own. 

By around midday, all of the tents had been set up. Wilbur had named their tent ‘L’Manberg’ after the stupid group chat, their tent being a massive beige bell tent with enough room in it for one to have their wings out, and with canvas thick enough that no one could see. 

Dream also had a tent, in which George, Sapnap, Quackity and Karl were staying. Well, not all in the same tent, but there were three small tents surrounding each other in a little ring. They had dubbed it ‘The Dream SMP’, for some reason unknown to Tommy. Bad and Skeppy were somewhere in the middle in their two person tent, calling it the ‘Badlands’. Niki, Fundy and Eret also joined the L’Manberg gathering, pitching two small tents to surround it. 

In Tommy’s opinion, it was a bit weird, but Wilbur seemed to be having the absolute time of his life, being the self proclaimed president of L’Manberg, even though the whole basis of the group was that they were European. Techno, however, had gone to the little building and sulked on one of the couches for some reason. Maybe it was the sheer amount of people there, since the guy seemed to hate large social gatherings. There was also no way to get him to do anything since Ranboo was going to be there tomorrow, instead of today. It sucked, but Tommy wasn’t angry. 

Tommy was stretching his wings in the bell tent, with Tubbo clinging onto him like ivy to a tree. The boy also had his wings out, and they were both sitting on the floor. 

“Tommy…” Tubbo whined, “I’m hungry.” he pulled away from their hug and looked at Tommy with those pleading puppy-dog eyes.

Tommy huffed, “Don’t give me that fucken’ look, Tubbs. That’s just unfair.” he sighed in annoyance, “Sure, you clingy bitch. We can go raid the fridge. Only if we can annoy Techno though!” Tommy grinned, then stood up and stretched his wings one last time before folding them under his skin. 

Tubbo nodded and mirrored Tommy, stretching then hiding his wings, then strolled out of the flap that served as a door out of the bell tent. 

They made their way over there, Tommy in front. 

He walked up to the door, expecting to walk through the doorway, only to be met with a hard pane of glass to his face and a dull thunk as he slammed into the glass door. How had he not noticed that?

“For fuck’s sake-” Tommy cursed, bringing a hand up to his nose, “Tubbo, do not laugh at me, you stupid son of a-”

The door opened, and Techno stood there with a shit-eating grin on his face, “Hey Tommy.” 

It must’ve been something to do with him being an avian, since birds would fly into windows and shit, Tommy concluded, pushing past Techno with a stormy scowl. There was no way that he, the great and huge TommyInnit, would walk into a glass door, though the incident just prior seemed to prove otherwise. 

“Tommy- You just walked into a door!” Tubbo giggled, strolling over the fridge, ignoring the disgruntled Tommy stood sulking in the middle of the room.

“That was an illusion.” he purposefully mis-pronounced ‘illusion’, “That was an illusion, you didn’t see anything. The great TommyInnit would never do such a thing.”

Tubbo just hummed in confirmation, still smirking, and pulled some Cheese Strings from the fridge, chucking one at him. Tommy, still in sulking mode, missed the item thrown at him and watched apathetically as it slapped onto the floor.

“Tubbo, you’re really shit at throwing things, you know?” he picked it up, tearing it open and taking a bite.

Tubbo gave him an affronted look, “That’s not how you eat Cheese Strings!” he cried, “What kind of monster eats a Cheese String like that?”

Tommy just shrugged and took another bite, “How am I supposed to eat them then?”

Huffing, Tubbo unwrapped his Cheese String and peeled a bit of cheese off, then ate it, “Like that. It’s why they’re called Cheese Strings!”

He just rolled his eyes and took yet another bite, “Too much faffing about, I’d rather just eat it straight up.” 

Tubbo sighed in acceptance, and continued eating his Cheese String in the most awkward fashion Tommy could imagine.

After that little disagreement, they got some proper lunch, courtesy of Techno, then joined the rest of the guys down by the river. Dream had brought an inflatable boat, and there were currently five people packed into what should really only hold two. Those five were, obviously, Karl, Quackity, Sapnap, George and Dream. Wilbur was standing on the bank with Niki, filming, and Eret was trying to set up Tubbo’s stand up paddleboard with Fundy. 

“Dream!” George cried out, “Stop rocking, idiot, you’re going to knock us- Dream!” Pretty much immediately after, the boat capsized and threw the four boys into the cold river. 

Tommy felt the memory from Dream’s swimming pool surface, and he suddenly didn’t feel like swimming anymore. Tubbo must’ve noticed his sudden shift in mood, because the boy leaned into him a bit as a reassurance. He didn’t question anything, just made sure that Tommy knew he was there for him. Though he would never admit it out loud, Tommy was so very grateful for a friend as caring and genuine as Tubbo.

“Right! I think that’s it all set up!” Fundy stood proudly over the inflated stand up paddleboard, and Eret poked it with their finger, nodding in satisfaction. They removed the pump, and it made a loud pop sound as the seal was broken momentarily, then screwed the cap on the valve. 

“Thanks guys!” Tubbo smiled fondly, grabbing the long oar and adjusting its height. They both replied with ‘no problem’, laughing when they jinxed each other.

Taking off his shoes, Tubbo prepared himself to get onto the board, first lowering it into the water, then sliding onto his knees. Tommy just watched with Fundy and Eret as his friend started paddling down the river, eventually standing up and doing a few laps up and down. 

“Hey Tubbo!” Wilbur called, catching Tommy’s attention as well, “What if all of the L’Manberg guys go on the paddleboard and all the Dream SMP guys go on the boat, and we can have a race!” his eyes twinkled in a way Tommy had never seen before. 

And so, they all got on their respective boats, Wilbur taking the front of the paddleboard and Dream taking the front of the dingy, and proceeded to fight.

The Dream SMP boat consisted of the five members from before, and the L’Manberg board was Wilbur, Tommy, Tubbo, Fundy and Eret. Niki had chosen to film the whole ordeal, since she hadn’t brought any clothes to swim in and to make sure it was a fair fight. 

By now, Tommy was really into the whole fighting thing, and had found something to fight for: the marshmallows. 

“Dream! We will fight back against your tyranny, and we will reclaim what is rightfully ours!” Wilbur shouted as he held up the stick he was wielding like some kind of sword.

“Yeah!” Tommy shouted, “You fucken’ stole them from our tent, we’re gonna fuck you up!” It was a bit silly, and very childish, but it was so much fun. It felt like something that he’d been missing, some kind of experience that had been robbed from him, and it was only now that he was finally having it. It was fun, truly, and the panic from earlier was nothing but a memory. 

They were ahead of Dream - only by a little bit, but still ahead. Tubbo was paddling incredibly fast behind him, and Wilbur was laughing as Tommy screamed insults to whoever he was passing.

“Sapnap, I hate you, what kind of dumb name is Sapnap!” He shouted, though was cut off when he heard Eret’s deep voice behind him.

“Look at that, you’re ahead.” they said in a mocking tone.

Wilbur spun around, “What do you mean?” He looked confused and scared. Dream laughed wickedly from the boat next to them.

Eret stood up, “It was never meant to be.” and then they leaned so the board would tip, hopping over gracefully to the Dream SMP boat in one, swift motion. Tommy didn’t even get a moment to process before he was plunged into cold, murky water, instantly filled with primal fear.

Before he completely lost it, Tubbo hauled him up and made sure he could reach the paddleboard. They waited there for a moment, both with their arms on the soaking wet board and both in shock as Dream pulled ahead and reached the tree that marked the end of the race.

Wilbur dragged himself up onto the board, “Traitor!” he cried out.

“We trusted you!” someone else screamed out.

Tommy, mustering all the strength he had left, glared at the teen and said darkly, “Eret, I mean this in the nicest possible way, you fucked up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope that was okay!   
> Do you guys like the group chat bits? I don't know if the group chat bits are okay, or if I should tone them down a little more, or even if you want more of them, so please drop a comment if you want me to change that!  
> Lastly, if you want to make fanart of this, I will cry, like I will sob, but if you do then please tag me on Instagram! I go by 'theteaandbiscuits'. (please i will love you forever)  
> That's all for now! Love y'all, so much. <33


	10. Summer Camping Trip (Pt. 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happy to play the joker, clown and the fool  
> Happy to tread the finest line for you  
> When it's dark  
> So dark, so dark
> 
> (So Dark - Dan Croll)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I'm back at real school this week so yeah. Real school. I have to wear a mask constantly.  
> So yeah this chapter was really hard to write, turns out working out interactions between, like, eleven different characters isn't easy. :/  
> Also! Just a heads up, there are a few POV changes in this, it's mainly Tommy but there's a bit from Skeppy's POV and a bit at the end from Techno's. 
> 
> CW: Panic attack (this one gets a little heavy in places, sorry)

Tommy found the time going quickly, the summer evening growing dim and cool as they entered the night. Many things happened: they found out that Eret had dealt with Dream for a share of the marshmallows, Tommy and Tubbo stole them back, then the Dream Team invaded their tent and Sapnap had a lighter with which he threatened to burn the tents down, so L’Manberg surrendered, and Tommy gave Dream half of the marshmallows. 

Now they were all sitting around a campfire that Sapnap had lit with Bad’s supervision, roasting s’mores and cracking terrible jokes. 

This was nice, Tommy found himself thinking. It was nice to just calm down for an hour or two, to curl up with Tubbo and wrap him in his wings under a blanket, to just mess with Wilbur and Techno. It was something he felt he would have missed, being a foster kid, but here he was. Serenity warmed him from the inside, and the fire warmed him from the outside. 

He didn’t often think about his past, it was pretty boring most of the time, and he tended to ‘live in present’, like those weird spiritual people he stayed with when he was around twelve who burnt too much incense and gave him rocks to ‘cure’ his anxiety. He had only stayed with them for a short while - the authorities quickly removed him once they found the incredible amount of weed the people were growing in their attic. 

There was a point where he was offered some by one of the teenage sons, and it was tempting. He knew it would be a quick relief, it was alluring to just escape for an hour or two, but on the other hand his instincts were screaming at him to stop, to walk away-

“Tommy?” the soft concerned tone of Tubbo’s voice cut through his thoughts, “I was asking you a question, and you were zoned out.”

He hummed, and leaned closer to his friend, “Ask me it then, big man.”

“Do you want another s’more? There’s only one marshmallow left in L’Manberg’s share, I thought you should have it.” Tubbo held a single, pink, marshmallow up, the fire casting it a dull orange-ish colour. 

He snatched it up with a fierce grin, “Of course, after I fought Dream so bravely I think I do deserve the last marshmallow!” he pierced it with his kebab stick, and held it over the fire. The memory of his past was quickly replaced with fond experiences in the present, and real experiences as well, not just a few hours down the river with kids he didn’t know who were all just trying to escape the harsh reality of their life. 

The night fell slowly, but it did begin to get cold outside, with people heading back into their tents one by one, and then Tubbo eventually bugging him enough that he stumbled through the dark and into their bell tent that housed Wilbur and Eret. Niki and Techno had taken the separate tents, leaving Fundy the only one still at the campfire from L’Manberg. It was rather impressive how huge the bell tent was, there being enough room for four beds and space to walk around in, as well as enough height to spread wings out without hitting anything. 

He and Tubbo were sharing a bed, taking the double airbed and leaving Wilbur with a roll mat and a sleeping bag. 

Wearily, he climbed onto the airbed and then flopped face first into his pillow. They each had a sleeping bag, Tommy’s being one Phil had sourced from the attic, it had a bright orange exterior and a warm, greyish inside. For a moment, Tommy considered just falling asleep, but he should probably actually get inside his sleeping bag. 

“Tommy, unzip the sleeping bag.” Tubbo said sleepily, doing the exact same to his own, then snuggling under one of Tommy’s wings. 

“What are you doing?” Tommy asked, though not making any move to push the boy away, “Clingy bitch.”

Tubbo simply hummed and ran a gentle hand through the wing that was draped over him. In Tommy’s slightly delirious state, he leaned into the touch and held his friend closely to his chest. There was a sleeping bag draped over them but neither of them were actually inside one. 

He felt the strange urge to keep Tubbo safe, to protect him, even though there was no threat. Holding him a little tighter, Tommy finally drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Skeppy woke up slowly. There was something warm draped over him, which once he woke up properly he identified it as Bad’s wings. His friend had wrapped him in warm, leathery bat wings, which he would have appreciated very much if he didn’t really need to go. Debating between the warm bed and the cold outside, Skeppy finally gave in. 

He carefully escaped the wings, then unzipped the tent and ran barefoot to the small building which had the little toilet in it. 

Tracking wet footprints over the floor from the dew on the grass, Skeppy slunk through the building as quickly as he could, wanting to get back to his friend’s reassuring embrace. Though at first he had found the bat wings rather disturbing, with how huge they were and the way the membrane went slightly translucent in the light, Skeppy soon learned that wings or no, his sweet friend would always be that: his friend. Nothing had really changed, and although it took a little while to adjust, Skeppy soon found himself at ease when wrapped in those impressively large wings. 

He himself had always tried to keep an open mind, so even if the fact that people with wings existed shifted his entire worldview, he promised to himself that he would accept the wingfolk and help them out. After all, he and Bad were no different, the only thing being that Bad was a bat hybrid. 

He got back to the tent, finding his friend with his wings curled around him like some kind of cocoon, reminding him of how bats would hang from branches. Lifting one of the wings, Skeppy climbed inside and relished the warmth. 

“G’Morning.” Bad muttered, then shifted slightly to accommodate the teen that just crawled up to him, making a soft sound of content in the process.

Skeppy giggled gently, “Hi Bat-boyhalo.”

“You smell like bonfires.” he drawled sleepily, ignoring the nickname. 

“What?” Skeppy huffed, “Why were you smelling me?”

“I- I wasn’t!” Bad whined, “We, uh, fruit bats have sensitive smell.” 

Wriggling a hand out to gently bop Bad on the nose, Skeppy grumbled, “Yeah, yeah, sure you do.” 

* * *

It was barely eight in the morning, and Tubbo was already up and walking around the tent with his wings happily flitting around behind him and a bowl of granola in his hand. He was eating it dry for some reason unknown to Tommy, and with his hands as well.

“Do you want some cereal?” Tubbo asked him, holding the bag of granola.

“No, Tubbo, I want to sleep.” he snarked, pulling his wings over himself like a feathery, heated blanket. 

The boy just hummed and continued to eat his weird dry granola. 

It was almost nine when Tommy finally got up, only because he got a text on the group chat from Ranboo.

**_no escape_ **

**_memoryboi_ ** _ : ill be at camp by nine ok _

**_karlos_ ** _ : way too early to be awake _

**_karlos_ ** _ : but yeah thats good _

**_skehpky_ ** _ : we misghst not be veray akawe _

**_thechild_ ** _ : tubbo is very much awake _

**_karlos_ ** _ : see ya soon ranboo! _

**_thechild_ ** _ : tubbo wil give you granola _

**_thechild_ ** _ : im adding tubbo to the chat _

**_karlos_ ** _ : yeah! add eret and niki too _

**_sandy_ ** _ : ill add them  _

_ ( _ **_thechild_ ** _ added  _ **_beeboi_ ** _ to the chat) _

**_beeboi_ ** _ : yayy _

**_karlos_ ** _ : TUBBOOO _

**_beeboi_ ** _ : >:DDD _

_ ( _ **_sandy_ ** _ added  _ **_Niki_ ** _ to the chat) _

_ ( _ **_sandy_ ** _ added  _ **_Eret_ ** _ to the chat) _

**_Niki_ ** _ : hello everyone! _

**_karlos_ ** _ : WHOOOO _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : hi  _

**_nightmare_ ** _ : george is actually fast asleep rn _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : wanna wake him up? _

**_karlos_ ** _ : YEAHH _

**_beeboi_ ** _ : can i help? _

**_karlos_ ** _ : YEAHH WOOO COME ON TUBBO _

**_beeboi_ ** _ : okay :] _

**_Niki_ ** _ : tubbo, be nice _

**_beeboi_ ** _ : i will :] _

_ ( _ **_Eret_ ** _ changed their name to  _ **_‘yourhighness’_ ** _ ) _

Tommy watched as Tubbo bolted out the tent, then followed him, hoping to catch the tail end of the chaos. Just before he left the tent, he realised his wings were still out, so he had to stop to pull them in before sprinting over to the Dream SMP area.

“Dream!” The shout rang out from the tent, followed by laughter and screaming.

Wilbur appeared next to him, “Did you miss George getting bullied?”

“Sadly.” Tommy sighed, tapping his side rapidly with his hand in another strange mannerism that he blamed on bird stuff, “I guess I will just have to bully him myself.” 

Chuckling slightly, Wilbur turned to look at the gate out of the field, staring in a zoned out manner. As if Wilbur predicted it with his staring, a bicycle pulled up at the gate, the teen on it far too tall for the bike.

“Hey, Ranboo’s here!” Tommy exclaimed, scouring the meadow for Tubbo, “Tubbo! Ranboo’s here!” he called, the boy poking his head out of a tent not too long after.

He and Wilbur strolled over to the gate, where Ranboo was fumbling with the bolt that kept it from swinging open.

“Took you long enough, bitch!” Tommy climbed onto the gate and opened the bolt, “Come on, you have to get Techno to stop sulking.”

Tommy hesitated for a moment, taking a good look at his friend. Something seemed off, he didn’t seem energetic or fidgety like usual and instead looked terribly pale. It was hard to tell with the vitiligo, and maybe it was just the patches of skin without any pigment, but Ranboo looked like he might keel over at any given moment.

Deciding it was most likely a mix of the vitiligo and him being tired from cycling in the heat, Tommy swung the gate open and dodged Tubbo who was running at full speed towards them. He ended up colliding with Ranboo, tackling him in a typical Tubbo hug, meaning they both ended up on the floor. 

“Ranboo!” Tubbo cried, “You’re finally here!” 

Tommy laughed as his friend knocked over a guy who was about a foot taller than him, picking up Ranboo’s bike for him and wheeling it through the gate. It took a while, but Tubbo let Ranboo up and they both walked with Tommy and Wilbur to the L’Manberg tents. 

“So, who are you going to be staying with, Ranboo?” Wilbur asked, raising his voice as he passed the tent Techno had slept in, and was probably still doing so. 

The boy just stammered a little, looking around the field at the many tents, “I kind of want to stay with you guys?” he finally said, “If that’s okay! I don’t mind staying on my own, I’ll leave you guys alone if there’s no room for me!” he added quickly. There was that nervous energy. 

“Come on Ranboo! Stay with me and Tommy!” Tubbo gently shoved Ranboo’s shoulder, causing him to whip his head around so fast his black hair flopped over his eyes. There was a suppressed flinch as well, Tommy could easily tell from experience. People didn’t normally touch him for anything other than, well, punishment, and though he’d been better after the month or so staying with Phil, he was far from over it all. 

Due to Wilbur mentioning Ranboo’s name so loudly, a pink haired head poked out of the zip of a blue tent, sending Tommy into fits of cackles.

“Hey Ranboo.” Techno said, before slipping back into the tent.

“Hi- oh. Bye, then.” Ranboo laughed quietly, then took the small rucksack off of his shoulders and held it in his hands, twirling one of the straps around his finger in neat little spirals. 

Not a second later, Techno emerged from his tent with a small, fond grin, “You doin’ good, kid?” 

“Uh, yeah. I’m… surviving.” Ranboo answered, his voice sounding slightly shaky and weak. His grip on the little spiral that he had wound the bag strap into slipped and it returned to its original shape. 

Techno hummed, joining them on walking to the main tent. 

In the end, Ranboo decided to stay in the main tent, and set up a little bed next to Tommy and Tubbo’s air bed. It was rather funny watching Ranboo trying to get into a sleeping bag when he was clearly much too tall for it, then Wilbur showing him how to unzip the sleeping bag and use it like a kind of duvet. The summer nights, though mild, could drop below 15 degrees (60 in Fahrenheit), and you didn’t want to be without a blanket of some kind then. 

It was going to be very hot today, Tommy decided. Even though it wasn’t even ten in the morning, he knew today would be well above 30 degrees (85 in Fahrenheit) and suffocatingly humid like most British summer days. Therefore, it would be the perfect time to have a water fight. They had a river that they could get water from quickly, he was sure that Quackity and Sapnap had some water guns with them, and if worst comes to worst then there’s always cups in the little building they could use. It was a flawless plan: he would announce the water fight, team up with Tubbo, Wilbur and Techno, then they would protect him as he soaked Dream and his little group. 

Tubbo had other plans in mind. He wanted an every man for himself kind of style, all for the fun of it and without any teams or anything. Techno obviously agreed, saying something or other about his ‘brand’, Tommy didn’t really care. 

It was almost time, he and Tubbo were armed with stolen water guns filled with river water and dressed in old clothes, ready to wreak havoc upon the peaceful late morning. 

“Tubbo, you ready?” he asked, crouching behind the Dream Team tent.

The boy shot him a mischievous grin and a thumbs up, then grabbed his water gun with two hands.

“Let’s go.” Tommy said, sprinting out from behind the tent and immediately spraying Sapnap in the face with water.

“What the hell!” he shouted, his hands flying up to his face in defense, “Tommy! You idiot!”

“Water fight!” Tommy smirked at the soaked Sapnap behind him, then followed Tubbo to the main area of the Dream SMP camp and aimed at Quackity. 

With a loud shriek, the teen was soaked by both Tommy and Tubbo at the same time, his beanie still staying on. They then approached their main target: Dream. He was lounging in a camping chair, doing something on his phone and sipping from a blue plastic cup, though not for long, since Tubbo squirted his water gun directly into the teen’s face. Dropping his phone on the chair and bolting towards Tubbo, Dream chucked his cup of water at the boy. 

“Hey! No one fucks with Tubbo!” Tommy growled, spritzing Dream from behind another camping chair. 

With one single swipe, Sapnap stole Tommy’s water gun from him, and turned it around so it was facing the previous owner.

Raising his hands, Tommy laughed, “Hey, Sapnap, my friend! You wouldn’t shoot a child?” 

Answered with only a smirk, Tommy quickly ran behind Tubbo, who was focused on pissing off Dream. He grabbed his friend’s shoulder and hid behind him best he could with Tubbo being considerably smaller than him. 

Before he could even process what had happened, Quackity bolted towards them and ended up with Tubbo’s gun in his hand, then suddenly they had three, wait, four - Karl had emerged from the tent at notice of the water fight - angry teenagers with water guns and ruthless smiles. Just as they were about to accept their fate, Wilbur and Fundy appeared behind them with water bottles filled with slightly murky river water. 

“This really wasn’t the greatest of ideas.” Fundy sighed, raising his water bottle so that it would squirt water at the four. 

Wilbur passed two bottles to him and Tubbo, “No, no. We got it, we can beat these dirty Americans.”

“So did you want my help or not?” Techno’s voice comes from behind Tommy, scaring him slightly. The man could be rather intimidating, though his whole emotionally distant brand was broken the moment he insisted on preening Tommy. 

But with Techno on their side, they’d be unstoppable, so Tommy decided to cover for Wilbur’s (correct) statement, “Techno, it’s okay, you’re the only American I do not hate.” he took the bottle from Wilbur, grinning as he raised it up to the four guys in front of him. 

“Think about that statement, Tommy.” Techno drawled, something slightly dark and threatening in his tone that sent his thoughts racing.

“Oh, yeah.” he rolled his eyes, “Of course, Ranboob. He’s American. I guess I don’t actually hate him.” 

Before Techno could retort with some witty, cynical remark, Dream fired a water gun he’d no doubt stolen from Sapnap, soaking Techno’s white shirt and splashing on Wilbur’s band shirt from some obscure indie band. He was immediately shot down by several water bottles firing blindly in his direction, Techno staying still as Tommy, Tubbo and Fundy shot at Dream and Wilbur soaked Quackity. 

In about five minutes, all hell broke loose. Tommy was sticking with Tubbo, but Wilbur and Fundy left them alone, saying something about ‘every man for himself’ then Wilbur promptly shot Tommy in the face with his bottle. He would basically shoot anyone that wasn’t Tubbo if they came near to him, then run down to the river to refill the abused plastic bottle. Right now, he was alone, Tubbo having run off in search of a new, better weapon. This meant he was vulnerable to attacks, especially from behind, so he skirted around one of the larger tents. 

Out of nowhere, Niki appeared with a much bigger water gun than the ones he and Tubbo stole from Sapnap, and it was pointed directly at Tommy.

“Hey Tommy!” she cried, cocking the water gun, “Prepare to get soaked!” 

Ducking, Tommy barely avoided the quick spray of water sent his way, then he ran out towards Niki. The water bottles only work in close range, so he’d have to dodge his way through the relentless stream of attacks that Niki was firing, with terrifying accuracy as well. She also giggled sweetly when Tommy tried to catch her with his water bottle, ending up making a small puddle on the grass in a pathetic ending.

His plan gone awry, Tommy retreated to find Tubbo hauling a huge bucket filled with river water.

“What are you doing?” Tommy shouted, though the boy either didn’t hear him or chose to ignore him, since Tubbo just kept on struggling to carry the large bucket.

Tommy noticed who Tubbo was looking at a moment too late. He had his pale blue eyes fixed on Ranboo, who was sitting quietly reading in the grass. Though the rest of the group knew of his hatred of water, Tubbo obviously didn’t, so he had no idea what was wrong when he crept up behind Ranboo and dumped an entire bucket of water over the unsuspecting teen.

The first thing that happened was they froze. Ranboo froze, Tommy froze, Tubbo - upon seeing Tommy’s expression - froze, and the rest of the group saw what had happened and froze. The next thing that happened was Ranboo started to breathe, far too quickly mind you, and something visceral and primal flashed in his eyes. It was enough to chill Tommy to his very bones, that was a kind of fear that no one should ever be familiar with. 

He still couldn’t move. Even when Techno rushed to Ranboo’s side, even when Tubbo started spewing apologies, even when Wilbur gently shook his shoulder, Tommy still couldn’t move and he  _ hated  _ it. He wanted to help his friend, but all he could do was stay rooted to the same spot by the panic that flooded all his senses. 

Tommy couldn’t even process what was going on. He heard screams, cries, of utter, horrifying terror, but he had no idea where they were coming from. His head was full of static, and the only thing he could do was to watch something he couldn’t even see.

Finally, Wilbur wrapping him in a hug shook him out of his stupor, and though his thoughts were still delayed and strangely distant, he could process what was going on now.

“It’s okay Tommy, we’re all safe.” Wilbur whispered, holding him in a gentle hug, “Ranboo is fine, you are fine, we’re all fine.”

Nodding, Tommy pushed away from Wilbur’s embrace to get a view of what was going on.

Techno had Ranboo in his wings, and the boy was clinging onto him for dear life. Niki was wrapping a soft looking pink towel around him, and Tubbo was kneeling on the ground holding one of Ranboo’s hands. The rest of the guys were loitering, not wanting to crowd the boy but still wanting to know if he was alright.

Sprinting away from Wilbur, Tommy ran up to Ranboo, who was staring blankly and sobbing in Techno’s arms.

“Ranboo? It’s me, Tommy.” he sat down near Tubbo. Getting no acknowledgement, Tommy decided to let Ranboo be and instead focus on calming down the now crying Tubbo. 

* * *

Techno was in the midst of a four versus one when he heard the massive splash of water. His original thought process went a little like wanting to see the chaos that sound might’ve caused. There was chaos alright.

What Techno did not want to see was Ranboo, the kid who he’d been keeping an eye out for, drenched in water and looking like what was probably verging on a panic attack. Unwanted instincts kicked in before his rationality could process what was happening, urging him to protect, to comfort, to  _ protect. _

Sprinting towards the teen, Techno felt his wings unfurl from his back in a desperate attempt to shield Ranboo from anything that might hurt him, the appendages seeming to have a mind of their own as they wrapped around the boy. Every cell of his body was screaming  _ protect, protect, protect the flock. _

Hands curled around his shirt, gripping on desperately for some kind of grounding sensation. The sobbing quickly escalated, strangled cries escaping Ranboo and causing Techno to hold him even closer. Niki had appeared with a towel, wrapping it around the boy’s shoulders, then Techno laid his wings back on the boy as his sobbing turned into blood curdling screams. 

It raised the hairs on Techno’s neck, there was some kind of pure panic that he knew was familiar but he wishes it wasn’t. Holding the crying boy closer, Techno wished he could somehow fight whatever was terrorizing the kid. Not that he would ever admit it out loud, but over time Ranboo had become like another younger brother to him. There was something in the boy that Techno related to, and he wanted to banish it from the kind boy’s heart. He himself was a monster - no one got the nickname ‘The Blood God’ for nothing - and therefore at least deserved the pain he went through, but Ranboo was a kid, a lovely, sweet, kind kid. 

Ranboo had stopped screaming, and was instead staring into space and softly sobbing, tremors occasionally wringing through his body. Tommy had finally come over, along with Wilbur, and they were sitting on the grass as well, careful as to not crowd the teen. 

Techno still had his wings wrapped protectively around the boy, and when Tommy got a little too close, a strange sound gurgled out of his throat without him even registering it. Damn his hybrid instincts, they always show up when he least needs them. Well, at least Tommy backed off, that was one good thing.

Once Ranboo had calmed down enough to be present, Techno felt his hybrid instincts forcing him to protect the boy die down a little, enough to let Tommy and Wilbur near, though not enough to release his wings from around Ranboo.

“Ranboo? Do you want me to go get your phone for you and you can play some music?” Wilbur asked, the same gentleness in his tone that he would use whenever Techno was having a bad day with the voices. 

Ranboo nodded from his feathered cocoon, humming a little then leaning into Techno. 

He felt all his anxiety and worries dissipate as the boy snuggled into him, finally feeling warm and content.

“Thanks, Techno.” Ranboo uttered, softly enough that no one else would hear it. He basically melted at that, his cold heart bleeding for this young boy that reminded him of himself, uncannily so. 

Wilbur soon appeared with Ranboo’s phone and some tangled, black earphones. They looked battered, the wires slightly exposed in one place. Techno plugged them in, then handed the phone to Ranboo.

The time flashed up on the lock screen: 12:32. Gods, was it already the afternoon? Going onto Spotify, Ranboo selected an album called ‘Spirit Phone’ with a red album cover, then tapped on the song ‘Cabinet Man’. Jamming the earphones in and whacking up the volume, Ranboo leaned into Techno again with a content sigh and tapped his fingers on the side of his legs that were drawn up to his chest. 

This went on for a little while, about fifteen minutes, until Ranboo finally paused the music and looked up to Techno, “Thank you. So much. For just, you know, dealing with me.” he wiped a hand down his face, smudged some tear stains, “I know I’m a bit of a handful sometimes, and I’m really sorry.”

Techno shushed him, picking up the boy bridal style and carrying him into the large bell tent, his anxiety picking at the fact he had his wings out in the open. Every time a thought that even related to him getting caught passed through his conscience, it sent a wave of panic through his very core. He would often rub at his right shoulder, or even scratch it, and repeat to himself that Phil had promised: never again.

Forcing himself from his thoughts, Techno gently placed Ranboo on the airbed that Tommy and Tubbo used, knowing that it was the most comfortable in the tent, then went back to holding him in his wings. Though his hybrid instincts to ‘protect his flock’ had mostly died down, they were still there, their presence undeniable as he held Ranboo close to him. 

They stayed like that for a few minutes, both content with the winged hug, until Techno’s phone pinged. Upon checking it, he found that Karl had sent a message to the group chat:

**_no escape_ **

**_karlos_ ** _ : heya guys wanna eat some burgers?? _

**_habibi_ ** _ : EVERYOEN WE MADE AWSOME BURGERS _

**_beeboi_ ** _ : yes please i woud like some burger _

**_thechild_ ** _ : FUCK YEAHH _

**_yourhighness_ ** _ : me and fundy would love a burger :] _

**_karlos_ ** _ : AWESOME!! _

**_sappynap_ ** _ : so noone not want any _

**_theblade_ ** _ : Just asked Ranboo, we would both like a burger. _

**_sandy_ ** _ : make sure to tell him i said hi :) _

**_theblade_ ** _ : hi this is ranboo _

**_sandy_ ** _ : hi ranboo _

**_thechild_ ** _ : BOOB BOY!! _

**_theblade_ ** _ : Tommy.  _

**_thechild_ ** _ : ok ok chill techno _

Techno smiled as Ranboo chuckled lightly, leaning over his phone.

“Can we go out now? I really want to make sure they know I’m okay.” Ranboo asked sleepily, wriggling out from beneath Techno’s wings.

Nodding, Techno stretched out his wings before folding them beneath his skin, following Ranboo out of the bell tent and towards the smell of a barbeque.

“Since I’m bi, does this make this an ‘LGBBQ’?” Eret asked, leaning back on a camping chair, “You guys don’t seem very straight, either.” they gestured to Quackity, who was sitting in Sapnap’s lap.

The rest of the group laughed, then Techno pulled up a camping chair and joined the group around the barbeque. 

“Hey guys.” he announced, met with smiles and fond greetings. 

Ranboo sat down on a beanbag, chatting with Tommy and Tubbo as if nothing happened. 

Soon enough, they got their (slightly burnt) burgers from Karl and Quackity, then Dream and George joined them for the burgers. It was nice, Techno decided. This was nice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay. Well, I'm sorry, I just HAD to write that scene. Anyways, if y'all want to send me fanart on Instagram (theteaandbiscuits) please please do so! I would love to see it, and will try my best to link it in whichever scene you draw :))  
> That's all for now! Bye bye, thank you, I love you all <33


	11. Summer Camping Trip (Pt. 3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A wonderful concoction of Karlnapity, Ranboo angst and Tommy being Tommy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello there! Sorry this chapter took a while to get out, school's been kicking my arse lately. Like, I'm so behind. Updates will most likely be weekly and a little shorter than usual, since my brain had so many other story ideas that I could be writing about. Also Mother's Day?? I had to socialize. It was annoying.  
> Anyways! Life story aside, this chapter is a mess and I hate it. The stupid tent scene was such a pain to write because I had to write tension. I am rather sorry for this one, we'll get more comfort next chapter.   
> Just a quick heads up: there's a few time skips/POV changes in this one. It starts with early evening with Quackity, then Tommy, then there's a little tiny bit with Wilbur, then back to Tommy again. This one got a little bit of re-organisation, so I hope it makes sense. (it's all in chronological order btw)
> 
> CW: Mentions of Dead Animals (not graphic)

“Can I have a hug?” Karl pestered, nudging into Quackity’s side.

“No, no, we both agreed that it’s my turn to have a hug.” Sapnap stated, practically crawling into his lap and poking his wings, obviously wanting to enjoy the warmth that the down provided.

Quackity groaned, “You only love me for my warmth. This is so unfair.” he still wrapped his wings around Sapnap, leaning into his friend and plucking the crisps he had been eating from his hands.

“Hey!” he cried, trying to snatch the crisps back.

Quackity smirked at Karl, tossing a few crisps in his direction, “Payment, bitch, payment!” he cackled at Sapnap’s unsuccessful attempts to steal back his snack. 

It was the last few hours of warmth of a summer night, and they were situated in Karl’s camping field. It had been a long day - the water fight, the incident with Ranboo, the burgers, the manhunt and Dream almost smashing both his ankles. There had been no organised dinner, mostly just take whatever you wanted. Quackity had ended up with some delicious homemade sausage rolls someone had mistakenly left in the fridge without writing their name and several threats on the tub, sharing them between his platonic boyfriends.

Now they were sat in the ‘Feral Crew’ tent as they had dubbed it, not wanting to be known as ‘The Dream Team’ anymore, binging anime on Karl’s computer and snuggling. It was just some lighthearted comedy anime, nothing too action packed, the manhunt this afternoon had been enough action for everyone. The premise of the game was that Dream would run from the three hunters George, Sapnap and Bad, if he tagged one of them they had to freeze for ten seconds, whereas if they tagged him he lost. Quackity had once spent a good few hours with Dream in a call where he talked about manhunt tactics for pretty much the entire time. 

Karl had moved behind him, and was running his fingers through his wings. He had been curious about the wings from the start, always petting them or gently straightening the fibres of each feather, all with this kind of awestruck admiration that made Quackity want to hug him. It was something that he wasn’t very familiar with, the way Karl handled him and his wings like they were some kind of precious relic to be worshipped and cared for. 

Sapnap had fallen asleep under his wings, leaning back into Quackity’s chest and softly snoring.

“Karl, Karl, go get the Sharpies! You know what time it is!” Quackity whispered, and Karl paused the anime and scampered off through the bedroom parting, returning with a battered pencil case.

“Got it, got it!” he grinned and giggled to himself, “Ooh, he’s gonna love this!” 

Quackity made no hesitation in grabbing a bright pink coloured Sharpie and drawing an anime-style blush on Sapnap’s cheeks, though it was kind of wonky due to him literally being in Quackity’s lap. 

“He’s such a pretty boy!” Quackity mocked, picking out another colour Sharpie, this time brown.

Karl had a red pen, and was trying to draw a red nose on Sapnap, though his hands were shaking too much without something to lean on, so he just sighed and passed the pen to Quackity.

“Okay, okay, okay, I’m gonna-” he broke into mischievous cackles, “I’m gonna fill in his stupid little eyebrow slit!” 

He did so, sticking out his tongue as he focused on staying within the shape of Sapnap’s eyebrow. The filled in bit looked much too dark, but Karl stopped him from filling in the entire brow, saying something about it being hard to wash out.

Next was Karl’s idea - a nice, red clown nose. It was rather difficult at this angle, but Quackity managed it. By this point, Sapnap looked beyond ridiculous, with Karl putting a few black lines on his chin as a fake stubble to finish off the look. 

“I think he looks beautiful!” Karl exclaimed, putting away the Sharpies.

“We popped off!” Quackity giggled, wrapping Sapnap in his wings again.

Karl pouted, “Can it be my turn yet?” he wriggled closer, trying to squirm into the cuddle.

“Fine.” Quackity drawled, “You sure are needy, both of you.”

Truly, he didn’t mind. Cuddles with both Karl and Sapnap were the best, and now he could let his wings out around them it was even better.

* * *

Tommy held the three phones in his hands, one of them with a torch shining from it, the other two dead. It was probably about one in the morning, and he had been tasked with taking the phones into the building to be charged up, one of them - one of the dead ones - was his, the torch being Ranboo’s phone. It was a tiny little Samsung brick-shaped thing, the only apps on it being Spotify and a few select others. No games, no social media, nothing. 

Edging the glass door open, Tommy continued to wonder about his new friend. Ranboo hadn’t let his wings out all day, had he? Plugging the phones into the array of charger leads, Tommy thought about how much pain the boy must be in by now. Why hadn’t he let out his wings?

Maybe the  _ incident  _ from earlier set the boy on edge. The rest of the day was spent peacefully, Tubbo going on his paddleboard and the Dream Team spending a good few hours playing their own rendition of manhunt, though this seemed slightly more murderous. Dream climbed up a tree during the game, then in his haste to get down fell out of the tree and screwed up his ankle, causing him to ultimately lose. 

Returning to the main tent, Tommy prepared himself to ask the skittish Ranboo about his wings, and if worst comes to worst then Techno was nearby and that man would never let Ranboo sleep with his wings in. 

“Hey bitches!” Tommy announced, strolling into the tent, taking off his hoodie and flinging it onto the floor before letting his wings out. 

There was a groan from Wilbur’s general direction, Tubbo returned the greeting and Ranboo just laughed a little. Fundy might’ve been asleep, but Tommy didn’t check as he collapsed onto his and Tubbo’s shared airbed. 

“Did you get the snacks?” Tubbo asked, gently shoving Tommy’s shoulder. Whoops, he had forgotten to get snacks while wondering about Ranboo. 

“Nope, I forgot.” he grinned, laying down on his front and resting his head on the pillow. 

Tubbo bopped him on the head, then huffed, “Tommy! You idiot, I was really hungry.”

“Go to sleep.” Ranboo suggested from his roll mat, “You can’t feel hungry if you’re sleeping. Drinking stuff also helps, or chewing gum.”

Tubbo retorted with some frustrated exclamation about how they don’t have any chewing gum, but Tommy was caught up in his own thoughts. 

“Hey Ranboob?” he cut Tubbo’s rambling off, addressing the other boy, “Why haven’t you let out your wings yet? You’ve been here for, I dunno, twelve hours or more.” his hands felt empty without his phone to gently rap over his arm, yet another tic he’d developed. 

From a corner of the tent, Wilbur seemed to rise from the dead to add to Tommy’s point, “More like almost fifteen hours.” there was a shuffle, “Let out your wings, Ranboo, or I’ll be forced to get Technoblade.”

The boy froze, and was probably making some sheepish expression that Tommy couldn’t see in the dark. He was obviously doing it on purpose, it only takes about eight hours of consistently keeping your wings in for the cramps to start up, and with wings the size of Ranboo’s it would probably take even less time. 

“I- I’m sorry.” Ranboo started, “I’m sorry, I didn’t notice.” Though he made no move to release his wings, and after a short, tense silence, Wilbur got up and left the tent, muttering something about getting Techno. 

There was then another long, tense silence, in which he and Tubbo exchanged a couple of knowing glances. It felt like he had known the boy for years, even though they’d only been friends for less than half a year. 

It didn’t take long for Wilbur to return with Techno trailing behind him, dressed in some tacky pink jogging bottoms and a clashing sweater with two holes in the back. They were talking in hushed tones, something that made Tommy nervous, since he couldn’t hear what was being said and felt like he was missing out on something. 

“So, Ranboo.” Techno said softly, the lateness of the night making itself apparent in his croaky voice, “What’s stoppin’ you lettin’ your wings out?”

Tommy shifted over to leave a space for Techno to come and sit down next to them, the man settling down between him and Ranboo, then letting his wings out. 

“I could…” Ranboo said quietly, “I mean- Physically, I could.” 

Techno hums, then brings his wings around the three of them, the pink feathers almost enveloping them, “Do you know why you’re not?” he asked simply.

“I think it might be my fault.” Tubbo murmured, “I did kinda… y’know. That.” there was a solemn silence, they all knew what Tubbo was referring to.

“You did what?” Ranboo asked, genuine confusion saturating his tone, “I don’t think I follow.” he dug around in his bag and found what Tommy could make out as a notebook of some sorts, “Hold on.” Ranboo said as he flipped through the notebook, finding the latest page in it and reading through it with his eyes squinted. From the pocket of his jogging pants, Techno fished his phone and shone the torch on Ranboo’s notebook.

There were paragraphs of words scrawled in semi-neat handwriting, making up what Tommy could only assume was a diary entry. 

“I… can’t find anything bad in the memory book.” Ranboo said, voice shaky and weak, “Guys? What happened?” his eyes glinted in the harsh light of Techno’s phone torch. 

Tommy wanted to tell him. He wanted to explain it in excruciating detail, he could recall each and every blood curdling scream and sob. But he remained in shocked silence.

“Do you remember the water fight?” Techno inquired, breaking the silence. 

“Kind of?” Ranboo replied, “I mean, it’s sort of difficult to think about. I know that it happened, just don’t really have any idea what actually went on.” his expression contorted into something horrifying and realisational, “And- And I can remember panic. There’s a lot-” he took a long breath, “There’s a lot of bad emotions there.” 

Was this what Ranboo had to deal with on a daily basis? Tommy knew that the boy had some memory issues, from jokes and such, but this seemed strange. Does he actually not remember what happened just earlier today? 

“I’m missing something, aren’t I?” Ranboo’s tone switched to desperate, and he glanced at the three of them as if it would trigger all the lost memories from today to return like nothing was wrong, “What happened?” 

Techno glanced at Tommy, looking tired beyond his years, then said, “Somethin’ did happen.” his words were careful and chosen mindfully, “Do you remember what happened after the water fight?”

“It’s weird, y’know.” Ranboo stated, frustration lacing his words, “I know you were there and I know it was a good thing. But what actually happened? Heck if I know.” he threw his hands down in his lap.

Techno hummed, then shuffled closer to the three of them, “First of all, let your wings out. We’re not going to question anythin’ that is obviously wrong with them right now, so don’t worry about gettin’ interviewed. Secondly, we’ll explain what happened.”

Tommy nodded, sitting up straight under the reassuring warmth of Techno’s wing. Wilbur had appeared out of nowhere, slotting between him and Techno and leaning into Tommy. He would’ve moaned at him and pushed him off, but right now was not the time, so he just sat content with Wilbur hanging off of him. At least he didn’t have to deal with Tubbo, he had crawled up to Ranboo and was holding the boy’s hand. It did, though, flare up a jealous side of him he didn’t recognise that well, which was annoying.

Ranboo took off his sweater and let out his wings, keeping them tucked close to his body. He was rather obviously hiding something, which became apparent when Tommy caught a glimpse of his primaries on his right wing. Well, what was left of them. He could only see the stubs of the crudely clipped feathers in the dim light, he and Wilbur being the only two at the right angle to notice them. It was a good job that Techno didn’t notice, since Tommy was worried the man would march over to whatever sorry human did this and kill them in his bright pink jogging bottoms, right there and then.

“What happened was, Tubbo dumped a bucket of water on you, which made you panic.” Techno stated, voice flat and stoic, “I comforted you and took you to this tent where we chilled out for a bit, left for some burgers, then you went off with Tubbo and Tommy to watch the manhunt.” 

Ranboo, who was scribbling down presumably the details of what happened into his notebook, nodded and seemed to bite back any sign of emotion. 

Wilbur, who was still pressed up to his side, added to Techno’s story, “He was a proper softie, came sprinting up to you. First time I’ve seen the guy let out his wings in public.” though he had a joking tone, Tommy couldn’t help but notice the kind, knowing and  _ brotherly  _ glance that Wilbur and Techno shared. They knew something that Tommy didn’t, and it was getting on his nerves.

With a nervous chuckle, Ranboo shut the book and set it aside, gently placing it next to his bag and layering a sweater over the top, which put him at an angle that let Techno and Tubbo see his ravaged feathers.

Tubbo stared at him, his bee wings flitting behind him with what Tommy could only assume was concern and second hand anger. 

Across from him was Techno, frozen with his eyes locked on the sorry state of Ranboo’s once white flight feathers.

“Ranboo…” Techno all but growled, “Who did this.”

Tommy felt instinctual fear fill him, the man was pissed beyond comprehension. Even in the dark, Tommy knew the way Techno’s face had twisted in protective anger, and even though Tommy was the outsider, the new kid, he knew that Techno would wield that same anger against any of the people that were horrible to him, even though he would most likely never share that with these guys. 

“It doesn’t matter.” Ranboo answered, voice cold and devoid of emotion. 

Techno, in a fit of usually suppressed emotion, threw his hands up and shouted, “Yes, yes it does matter! You’re obviously dealing with something, and I want to help you, so do all of us, but we can’t help you if you carry on hiding this from us!” he took a long breath and hung his head. Ranboo was cowering behind his wings which had curled up in front of him instinctually, leaving his clipped feathers of his right wing exposed to all four of them. 

Tommy could only imagine how it had been done. The cuts were uneven and choppy, they seemed slightly too high up, the fibres of the feathers were left looking strangled and wilted. 

Upon realising how much he had scared the young teen, Techno instantly began to apologise, “Oh, Gods. I’m sorry Ranboo, the voices- I kinda lost my cool there. I’m sorry, Ranboo.” 

Tommy didn’t like this. The atmosphere was all wrong, this was supposed to be a nice, chill camping trip. No one was meant to shout or argue. He hated arguing, there was way too much of it in some homes he’d been in. Maybe he had been the instigator, but does that really matter right now?

“My uncle.” Ranboo mumbled, amidst Techno’s frantic apologies. 

Techno didn’t hear him. He had his hands slotted through his long, pink hair, gripping tightly enough to hurt, and was muttering to himself. Trying to pull him from his stupor was Wilbur, resting a gentle hand on Techno’s shoulders, just above where his wings were, and was whispering reassurances. 

Tubbo was coaxing Ranboo from behind his wings, so Tommy decided he would at least try and help. Maybe, though, his brash attitude and lack of impulse control wouldn’t be ideal in this situation, he thought. Maybe he should just… wait. 

He didn’t have a moment to ponder on that question before his instincts answered it for him with urges to  _ protect _ , to  _ help _ , to  _ comfort _ . He soon found himself prying Ranboo from his feathered cocoon and wrapping him in his own wings, letting Tubbo snuggle up as well.

“It’s okay, big man.” Tubbo said sleepily, leaning into Tommy.

“Yeah, I’m sure Techno only means well.” Tommy added, gripping onto his two friends tightly thanks to his instincts and  _ only  _ his instincts. He wouldn’t do any of this cuddling crap normally.

Tubbo still had the energy to tease left in him apparently, as he melted into Tommy’s embrace and said, “You big softie.” 

“I am not!” he retorted, pulling away only for Tubbo to tighten his grip on Tommy’s shirt, yanking him right back into the cuddle pile, “It’s the bird instincts, man.” he grumbled.

“Sure, whatever you say.” Ranboo said sarcastically, voice still a little shaky and weak but obviously glad to have something other than himself to talk about. 

Techno left the tent after not too long, half jogging out of the door flap in a flurry of apologies and with one hand gripped concerningly tightly around his right shoulder. In his wake was a void of tense silence. 

“Is he okay?” Ranboo asked, his voice sounding like it was on the verge of breaking. 

Wilbur shuffled under Tommy’s wings and joined their little hug pile. He would’ve shoved the lanky bitch away, but he was tired and his bird instincts were basically in complete control. 

“Techno’s just tired. He lost his control, he didn’t mean to get angry.” Wilbur explained, “He actually was angry for you, not at you. He’s very protective of his flock.”

Ranboo tilted his head, as well as he could whilst being squeezed by Tubbo, and queried, “Flock?” 

Wilbur gently separated himself from the hug, “Yes, your flock. It’s kinda like a bird family thing, so the hybrids that you’re close with. You tend to feel strong protective tendencies and trust towards those people.”

Tommy, upon hearing Wilbur’s words, realised that he felt that way towards Tubbo, and maybe even Ranboo. He trusted Wilbur, Techno and Phil as well, though he trusted Phil the most. Wilbur was a close second, and Techno - well, he was still working his way around that man. He was definitely close with Techno, but his emotional unavailability made it hard for him to trust the guy completely. 

“Huh.” Ranboo seemed lost in his own thoughts as well, probably realising that maybe these people he was staying in a tent with actually liked him. 

“Tommy, Ranboo...” Tubbo croaked sleepily, “You’re part of my flock.” he had his hands running through each of their wings, gently petting them as he drifted off to sleep. Wilbur had slunk off to his roll mat as well, smiling fondly in the dim light with a teasing glint in his dark eyes. 

Tommy had started running his hands through Ranboo’s wings without even noticing it, the boy leaning into his touch with soft hums of content. All three of them slowly layed down, Tubbo almost asleep, although he and Ranboo were still awake. 

“I’m sorry about forgetting. I do that a lot, actually.” Ranboo murmured, sifting his finger through Tubbo’s hair. 

“Don’t apologise, big man.” Tommy said quietly as he could manage, “You can’t control it. Plus, you can always count on us to fill in the blanks.” he assured the boy, still running his fingers through his wings, though not preening him, more like petting him. 

“Okay.” Ranboo sighed, sounding tired as Tommy felt, which meant borderline dead. Maybe death microwaved - soggy, cold in the middle and devoid of all nutrition and flavour. 

“Ranboo…” Tubbo whined, burrowing deeper into the cuddle, “Ranboo, my beloved.” he murmured, petting Ranboo’s hair in his delirious tired state.

The absurdity sent him, Ranboo and even Wilbur into cackles, whilst the half asleep Tubbo just seemed confused.

“Ranboo my beloved!” Ranboo laughed, looking almost as confused as Tubbo, “Why- Why Ranboo my beloved?”

Tubbo, who by this point should’ve been asleep, but there was some part of his brain that was still responsive, then said, “I don’t know… what that word means.”

The three conscious people further devolved into breathless chuckles and restrained cackles, until they joined Tubbo and fell asleep. 

* * *

Wilbur couldn’t sleep. It was rather often that he would be lying awake in bed with only his thoughts to accompany him, no matter how hard he tried he just couldn’t relax and go to sleep. 

It was raining, and the pitter patter of droplets on the tent’s thick canvas should have been a reassuring white noise, but all Wilbur could think about was the summer shower breaking through the canvas and soaking him, Tommy, Tubbo, Fundy and Ranboo. Maybe even getting the separate tents that Techno, Eret and Niki were in. 

His paranoia kept him awake and worried, his eyes wide open and unblinking in the darkness, kept open for whatever might assault him or his flock. That was a weird thought - his flock. 

Although Techno, Phil and Tommy were all avians, Wilbur was a butterfly. A Swallowtail butterfly, with wings that get torn so very easily and damaged with one wrong move. He couldn’t shield anyone like Techno did, he couldn’t hug anyone like Phil nor could he wrap up his best friends like Tommy. Wilbur was nothing but a liability, someone to keep an eye on, someone who needed protection.

The rain came in waves, one moment it would be almost silent and then the next it would surge down in relentless gusts. It sounded as if it were trying to claw its way into his tent. 

Wilbur was weak. He couldn’t even withstand the cold, he would never survive on his own. The weak die, and Wilbur was weak. It was drilled into his head by his instincts: the weak die. If he was weak, he would die. 

Wilbur’s tears silently slipped down his temples and past his ears, soaking into the pillow. He would always be weak. There were no words that would change that. 

Despair was so very, very cold. It was almost like his insides were choked in ice, ripping shudders through his body. He was so very cold. 

* * *

“She is called Hot Girl.” Tommy announced to Ranboo, “Would you like to meet Hot Girl?”

Ranboo, who was sitting in the grass reading one of Technoblade’s books, looked up at him with a strange expression.

Tommy simply sipped his cup of tea and took another bite of his toast. It was tepid by now, but the smattering of chocolate spread made up for that. It was sometime in the morning, probably around ten or so, and most people were awake and making breakfast. Wilbur had volunteered to cook a proper hot breakfast for everyone, more a brunch really, but had let Tommy have a slice of toast and Nutella to keep him going until the sausages, eggs and bacon were done. 

“Who is Hot Girl?” Ranboo asked, looking slightly offended. He closed the book, well aware that he wouldn’t be left in peace if he didn’t follow Tommy.

He smirked, “Well, my friend, I’m glad you asked.” he gestured to Ranboo to follow him, “Hot Girl is my new snake which me and Tubbo-”

“Snake?” Ranboo squeaked, slipping on his sliders and easily catching up with Tommy thanks to his ridiculously long legs.

“Yes, yes, now let me finish.” he waved the teen’s concern off, “Hot Girl is the snake me and Tubbo found by the river. She’s a bit asleep right now. Also, Techno said Hot Girl wasn’t poisonous, and I think he’s right.” he led Ranboo over to where Tubbo was crouched in a bush.

Stunned into silence, Ranboo approached the underbrush in which Hot Girl was situated, looking at his most awkward.

“She’s sleeping right now.” Tubbo said in a low, hushed voice. He glanced over at the bush, which Tommy could now see housed a rather large looking snake with brown and green mottled skin and a yellow stripe over its neck. 

Ranboo took one look at Hot Girl, then turned to Tommy with a horrified expression, “Tommy…” he said, “It’s dead.”

Was it? Upon closer inspection, the snake’s eyes were sunken in and black, it looked rather worse for wear. How had he not noticed?

“No, no. She’s sleeping.” Tubbo smiled brightly. 

“Oh…” Tommy let out a long groan, playing up his grief for jokes, “Hot Girl, I am so, so sorry.” approaching the snake, it was clear it was dead. Surely, he should’ve known when the animal didn’t immediately run off when he approached it. But alas, Hot Girl was dead.

“Tubbo, he’s right.” Tommy stated, sounding heartbroken, “Hot Girl is dead.”

Tubbo simply waved a hand at him, “Shush, I don’t believe you. Hot Girl isn’t dead.” he turned back to the poor snake.

“Tubbo…” Ranboo sighed, “Now’s not the time to be going through the five stages of grief.”

Techno suddenly appeared behind him, resting a hand on Tommy and Ranboo’s shoulders, “You lot finally worked out the snake’s dead?”

“Yeah, I told them.” Ranboo replied, sounding tired and frustrated, but in a fond way.

“She’s called Hot Girl, Techno.” Tommy corrected him, “And now we’re going to have to have a funeral for her.”

Techno sighed and started walking away, “Have fun with that. Don’t force me to participate. Also, I’m not calling it that.” he left the bush, walking towards the campsite with his hands stuffed in his thin, white trousers. 

Tommy deliberated fake crying, but ultimately decided that would be overdoing the joke, instead he just helped Tubbo dig a small grave and placed Hot Girl into her shallow hole. He packed dirt over the top, and Ranboo placed some flowers on top.

“May she rest in peace.” Tommy said, trying his very best to keep serious. It was hard when Tubbo was on the brink of another giggling fit and Ranboo was looking so solemn it was almost believable. In fact, if Tommy didn’t know this was a grave for a grass snake named ‘Hot Girl’, he’d think Ranboo just buried his dog or something. 

Once the funeral was done, Wilbur’s cooked breakfast was ready, and they all ran off to grab some before the Feral Crew snagged everything. 

Sitting down on the river bank next to Tubbo and Ranboo, inhaling his fried egg and crispy bacon, Tommy realised he was halfway through this camping trip. It had been two nights and three days by now. 

What would happen after? He knew that Tubbo, Niki and Eret would be staying in their house soon, then Dream had arranged for all of them to come round to his for another sleepover and pool party sometime in August. It would be the first time the guys in the groupchat had met his parents, actually. 

Tommy had a feeling, a twinge of paranoia, but it was soon drowned in the jokes that were happening in the present and the delicious egg yolk he was dipping his toast in.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope that was all okay! This story has gotten rather popular, and I'm really really grateful for all the support, but it's also quite a bit of pressure lol. Just remember - all I am doing is writing headcanons and rambling about block men. Also, what did y'all think about how I presented Ranboo's memory loss? I don't really know how accurate I represented selective memory loss, but I tend to forget/block out details of lots of (traumatic???) events and I know it happened, because people would tell me and I would know, but the details were like??? Blurry??? Dream-like???  
> I don't know, lmao.   
> You guys like Hot Girl? (rip)  
> Also Ranboo and Techno will have a proper heart to heart next chapter then I will FINALLY progress from this stupid camping arc.   
> Later! <333

**Author's Note:**

> Please comment! It translates directly to my code and causes me to write faster. It doesn't even have to mean anything, even a keyboard smash or a smiley face will make my day!
> 
> \- Joe <3


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